The Jurassic Park franchise was spawned from a pair of well-written novels that tackle a host of deep topics. The movies made these themes palatable for mainstream cinema-goers, without losing sight of what made the novels so interesting.
Tackling male pride, scientists playing God and man Vs nature, the Jurassic movies deliver a lot of clever messages in easily-digestible scenarios and eternally-quotable lines of dialogue. There's sarcasm, snark and genuine reverence for the 'terrible lizards' that have been resurrected by a well-meaning but misguided billionaire in the quotes below.
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"God Creates Dinosaurs. God Destroys Dinosaurs. God Creates Can. Man Destroys God." - Ian Malcolm (Jurassic Park)
Michael Crichton's Jurassic Park novels ask many deep questions, exploring such topics as creationism, evolution and, of course, Chaos Theory. The movies by and large focus more on the 'Blockbuster' angle of big dinosaurs and exciting adventures, but certain themes remain intact.
This line from Ian Malcolm essentially sums up the entire franchise, examining the foolishness of man's endeavors to play with (and fight against) the laws of nature. His quote can be taken metaphorically, the idea of God taken out of the equation of life, to be replaced with power-mad billionaires and their own legion of scientists.
9 "Dinosaurs Eat Man. Woman Inherits The Earth." - Ellie Sattler (Jurassic Park)
Ellie Sattler follows up Malcolm's line with this iconic quote. The only grown woman on the tour, Ellie is a far cry from the 'damsels in distress' of adventure movies past. She's witty, intelligent and can certainly handle herself in terrifying situations.
This quote is also a subtle description of Jurassic Park's plot, to a degree. All of the dinosaurs on the island are female, so once the survivors flee, woman has indeed inherited the earth. As Muldoon might say, “Clever girl”.
8 “Some Of The Worst Things Imaginable Have Been Done With The Best Intentions." - Alan Grant (Jurassic Park 3)
Jurassic Park 3 brought a reluctant Alan Grant back into the fray, planting him on Isla Sorna to search for a missing boy. His friend and colleague Billy is with him, and he ends up stealing some Velociraptor eggs.
Of course, Grant is horrified. The raptors still haunt his nightmares, and when Billy protests his intentions for keeping them, Alan shoots him down. The line also works quite well as metaphor for the plot of the franchise – good intentions leading to, eventually, global disaster.
7 "But You Didn't Ask For Reality, You Asked For More teeth." - Henry Wu (Jurassic World)
Since the original movie was released, there have been many further developments in the study of dinosaurs. A lot of these discoveries contradict the depiction of the creatures across the original trilogy.
Henry Wu acknowledges this, emphasizing the notion that the dinosaurs we see aren't entirely accurate. Their DNA has been altered to make them more interesting to modern tourists (and viewers). It's also a tantalizing hint at the terrifying Indominus Rex, which would appear later in the movie.
6 "Somewhere On This Island Is The Greatest Predator There Ever Lived. The Second Greatest Predator Must Take Him Down.” - Roland Tembo (The Lost World: Jurassic Park)
Touching once more on the hubris of man, The Lost World: Jurassic Park provides us with Roland Tembo, a surprisingly likable big game hunter, out to claim the ultimate prize: a Tyrannosaurus Rex.
As the film progresses, we notice a change in Tembo as he watches his friends and colleagues die at the hands of various dinosaurs. He survives, but it seems that he's given up on the hunting lifestyle, perhaps finally respecting the animals, humbled by their ferocity.
5 “...If The Pirates Of The Caribbean Breaks Down, The Pirates Don’t Eat The Tourists!” - Ian Malcolm (Jurassic Park)
Ian Malcolm is full of snarky wit, and a whole feature could be dedicated to his remarks and comebacks alone. This was his response to John Hammond's declaration that even Disneyland had problems in the beginning.
It's a hilarious line, but also one that rings oh-so-true. It highlights not only the very real danger the characters are about to face, but also the naivety of Hammond himself – a man so determined for things to go right he's almost oblivious to the potential consequences when they don't.
4 "She's Learning Where She Fits On The Food Chain, And I'm Not Sure You Want Her To Figure That Out." - Owen Grady (Jurassic World)
Owen Grady is the 'Alan Grant' of the Jurassic World saga. He's a little more hands-on than Grant, who would never have even entertained the thought of trying to train Velociraptors, but they certainly share a similar respect for the dinosaurs as living, breathing creatures.
The Indominus Rex breaks out, a brand-new creature that has never walked the Earth before. Grady offers a solemn warning, that this creature is angry, powerful and vicious. As we later learn, it kills for fun as well as food...
3 "Hold Onto Your Butts." - Ray Arnold (Jurassic Park)
Somehow, this line has become iconic in the years since. It's not the wittiest of quotes, and certainly not deep or particularly meaningful, but it's fun and is spoken by Samuel L. Jackson. What's not to love?
The “butts” in question are the men's cigarette butts as Ray Arnold (Jackson) turns off the power. In recent years, the moment has been ripe for meme potential, and even though Jackson didn't have the biggest role in Jurassic Park, he's certainly remembered!
2 “It Isn't Enough To Do Nothing.” - Kayla Watts (Jurassic World: Dominion)
Kayla Watts is a huge fan favorite, holding her own in a big franchise-ender amongst a host of returning legacy characters. She's full of fire, brave to the last and also offers the first bit of queer representation in the Jurassic Park/World series.
Her line here is a real rally cry, telling both Owen and the audience that standing by and letting bad things happen is simply not good enough. She's prepared to risk her life for relative strangers, no matter what.
1 “These Creatures Require Our Absence To Survive, Not Our Help. And If We Could Only Step Aside And Trust In Nature, Life Will Find A Way." - John Hammond (The Lost World: Jurassic Park)
After the disaster on Isla Nublar, John Hammond has finally realized what's important. He understands that the dinosaurs he created should be left alone, to thrive in their own environment away from human eyes.
He was portrayed as an eccentric dreamer, but a well-meaning one in Jurassic Park, and in the sequel Hammond is truly on the side of good, opposing his ruthless nephew who is striving to build a new park in San Diego. As the franchise evolved, life did indeed find a way.
Jurassic World: Dominion released in theaters on June 10, 2022.