Jurassic World: Rebirth Confirms Its New Dino Villain Has a Star Wars Connection

Jurassic World: Rebirth director Gareth Edwards revealed an interesting connection between the franchise's D-Rex (Distortus Rex) and Star Wars. Universal Pictures' new entry to the Jurassic franchise raised the stakes even more as it introduced a new terrifying mutant dinosaur named the D-Rex. The D-Rex wreaked havoc on an isolated island called Ile Saint-Hubert, where cross-species experimentation for the first Jurassic Park occurred. Marketing for Jurassic World: Rebirth showcased the D-Rex's horrific design, cementing that it is unlike any dinosaur seen in the franchise (so far). 

Part of the hype surrounding Rebirth was mainly due to the D-Rex's inclusion, and glimpses of this monstrosity were shown throughout promotional footage of the film. One of the main conversations among diehard fans is how the D-Rex looks similar to a Xenomorph from Ridley Scott's Alien movies. However, a recent comment from Jurassic World: Rebirth director Gareth Edwards suggested that he took a page from one of the fascinating creatures of Star Wars to provide input for the D-Rex's design. 

Speaking during a special Q&A hosted by Collider after the screening of Jurassic World: Rebirth, director Gareth Edwards (who also directed Rogue One: A Star Wars Story) confirmed that the D-Rex's design is inspired by a "little bit of the Rancor from Star Wars," jokingly telling attendees not to tell the people who work on Star Wars about this tidbit: 

Collider: "I'll stick with the D-Rex a little more here. Can you tell us what it's made up of? I know the base of it is the T-Rex genome, but what else do you envision being in it?"

Gareth Edwards: "I thought it was really an opportunity for Frank to have a cameo in the film, so we scanned Frank's face. The scanner wasn't working properly, and... No, I'm joking. Basically, you took everything in a melting pot. It's really hard to come up with a monster idea. We put in a little bit of the Rancor from Star Wars. Don't tell people who work on Star Wars."

As one of the main dinosaurs in Jurassic World:Rebirth, the D-Rex is a mutated dinosaur created from a base T-Rex genome, and it has an oversized head and six limbs (which it uses to walk in an ape-like manner and catch its prey). In comparison, the Rancor is a primal creature with only two powerful arms, thick skin, and a massive jaw with sharp teeth. If the pair were pitted against each other in a fight, the D-Rex could easily have an advantage over the Rancor. 

Jurassic World: Rebirth tells the story of a group of covert operatives led by Zora Bennett (Scarlett Johansson) who travel to a secret island to retrieve DNA samples from the three largest dinosaurs of land, air, and sea to create a cure for mankind. However, their mission goes haywire after they encounter several dangerous creatures that thrived in isolation. Alongside Johansson, the movie stars Mahershala Ali, Jonathan Bailey, Rupert Friend, Luna Blaise, and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo. Jurassic World: Rebirth premiered in theaters on July 2, 2025. 

The D-Rex Could Be an Important Dino in Jurassic World's Future

Jurassic World: Rebirth might not be the only project in which the D-Rex is featured because there are many storytelling opportunities for the mutant dinosaur. While Rebirth could be a perfect avenue to introduce the D-Rex to the worldwide audience, future movies could further expand on its origin and how sinister companies could try to control this monstrosity for themselves. 

Ahead of the movie, not much is known about the D-Rex's origin and importance to the grand scheme of things. Although there are several Jurassic World: Rebirth spoilers that cement how terrifying and dangerous the D-Rex truly is, there is a sense that the movie will only scratch the surface when it comes to the D-Rex's true nature, leaving fans wondering what's next for the evil dinosaur. 

If Rebirth ends up being a success at the box office, future movies could further explore the consequences behind creating a mutant dinosaur like the D-Rex, considering its existence could pave the way for other genetics companies to create one of their own (which could be far more bigger and dangerous than the current D-Rex). The D-Rex's inclusion could also spark some conversation on how mankind has gone too far, leading to a debate centered on the ethical and legal repercussions of creating such dinosaurs.