Sony Pictures drops Jumanji: Open World trailer after San Diego Comic-Con, with Kasdan back as director
LOS ANGELES, July 30. Sony Pictures released the trailer for "Jumanji: Open World" after San Diego Comic-Con concluded last weekend, choosing to launch the campaign for director Jake Kasdan's sequel outside the convention's crowded announcement window.
Key takeaways
- Sony Pictures released the trailer for "Jumanji: Open World" after San Diego Comic-Con ended rather than during the convention.
- Jake Kasdan returns to direct, marking his third Jumanji entry following his 2019 film "Jumanji: The Next Level."
- The Jumanji franchise traces back to a 1995 film starring the late Robin Williams, based on Chris Van Allsburg's 1981 children's book.
- "Zathura" (2005) was a standalone spinoff drawn from a separate Van Allsburg book and fell well short of the original Jumanji's box office.
- Sony chose to release the trailer in a quieter news cycle to avoid competing with other studios' Comic-Con weekend announcements.
LOS ANGELES, July 30. Sony Pictures released the trailer for "Jumanji: Open World" after San Diego Comic-Con concluded last weekend, choosing to launch the campaign for director Jake Kasdan's sequel outside the convention's crowded announcement window.
Kasdan back for his third Jumanji entry
Kasdan is returning to a franchise he helped reset with his 2019 film "Jumanji: The Next Level," the direct predecessor to "Open World." The series reaches back to a 1995 theatrical release that had modest critical standing but a durable audience.
That original film starred the late Robin Williams and drew on a 1981 children's book by Chris Van Allsburg. Critics reviewed it without enthusiasm. Audiences responded differently, and the picture has since become what the source characterizes as something of a classic.
A second Van Allsburg adaptation
Van Allsburg's catalog generated one more film. "Zathura," released in 2005 as a standalone spinoff, drew on a separate Van Allsburg title rather than the Jumanji book itself. At the box office, it fell well short of the original Jumanji's performance.
Two decades on, "Zathura" holds a smaller but durable place. The source notes it has held up well and retains its own small cadre of fans. It was no franchise launchpad. It has not faded entirely.
A Jumanji animated television series also existed. The source's verdict: forgettable.
Sony holds the trailer outside Comic-Con
San Diego Comic-Con is a standard venue for studio franchise reveals. Sony Pictures passed on that platform, releasing the "Open World" trailer after the convention ended rather than folding it into last weekend's announcement slate.
The move puts the trailer in a quieter news cycle, without competition from other studios' weekend announcements. Kasdan's 2019 predecessor was a box-office hit. "Open World" is his follow-on, with the trailer now in public circulation.