Jumanji: The Next Level

Jumanji: The Next Level is a 2019 American fantasy adventure comedy film directed by Jake Kasdan and co-written by Kasdan, Jeff Pinkner, and Scott Rosenberg. It is a sequel to 2017's Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, the second follow-up to 1995's Jumanji, and is the fourth installment in the Jumanji franchise. It stars Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, Karen Gillan, Nick Jonas, Alex Wolff, Morgan Turner, Ser'Darius Blain, and Madison Iseman reprising their roles from the previous film, while Awkwafina, Rory McCann, Danny Glover, and Danny DeVito also join the cast. The film's plot takes place three years after Welcome to the Jungle, in which the same group of teenagers, along with an old friend and two unwitting additions, become trapped in Jumanji. There, they all find themselves facing new problems and challenges with both old and new avatars, while having to save the land from a new villain in order to escape.

Jumanji: The Next Level
Theatrical release poster
Directed byJake Kasdan
Produced by
Written by
Based onJumanji
by Chris Van Allsburg
Starring
Music byHenry Jackman
CinematographyGyula Pados
Edited by
Production
companies
Distributed bySony Pictures Releasing
Release date
  • December 13, 2019 (2019-12-13)
Running time
123 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Budget$125–132 million[2][3]
Box office$800.1 million[2][4]

Principal photography took place during 2019, between January 21 to May 11 in locations including Atlanta, New Mexico, Alberta, and Hawaii, with much of the cast consisting of those from the previous film reprising their original roles for the sequel.

Jumanji: The Next Level was theatrically released in the United States on December 13, 2019, by Sony Pictures Releasing, under its Columbia Pictures label. The film received generally positive reviews from critics and grossed $800.1 million worldwide against a $125 million budget, becoming the tenth highest-grossing film of 2019. A sequel is in development.

Plot

Three years after their adventure in Jumanji, Spencer Gilpin, Anthony "Fridge" Johnson, Martha Kaply, and Bethany Walker lead different lives, but plan a reunion brunch in Brantford, New Hampshire. Spencer, apprehensive of the meeting due to his comparatively dull life, contemplates returning to Jumanji where he had purpose, and spends his first night looking over the broken video-game system he held onto. The following day, his friends visit his home, meeting with Spencer's grandfather Eddie, who is recovering from hip surgery, and Eddie's former friend and business partner Milo Walker, who is visiting for an unknown reason. Learning that they have no idea where Spencer is, the group searches the house and finds the Jumanji game partially repaired in the basement. Realizing Spencer returned to the game, his friends decide to follow him.

The game malfunctions when starting up, drawing in Fridge, Martha, Eddie and Milo, leaving Bethany behind. Inside the game, Martha finds herself as her avatar Ruby Roundhouse, yet Fridge becomes Bethany's avatar Professor Sheldon Oberon, while Eddie and Milo become Spencer and Fridge's avatars Dr. Smolder Bravestone and Franklin "Mouse" Finbar respectively. After instructing Eddie and Milo on the game's rules, the group encounters non-player character Nigel Billingsley, the game's guide, who reveals that since its last use, Jumanji is suffering from a massive drought. To leave the game, Nigel reveals that the group must recover the "Falcon Jewel" – a magical necklace stolen by warlord Jurgen the Brutal – which can end the drought if brought before sunlight and uttering "Jumanji". Bethany, contacts fellow Jumanji alumnus Alex Vreeke for help.

Transported to a desert called the Dunes to track down Jurgen, and after narrowly escaping a flock of pursuing ostriches, the group encounters Spencer operating as skilled thief Ming Fleetfoot, a new avatar, who agrees to help them after blaming himself for their predicament. While attempting to escape the Dunes, the group faces new challenges and problems, along with collecting an in-game item called a Jumanji Berry, and discovering a pool of glowing green water that allows them to switch avatars. In the process, Eddie bickers with Milo, revealing their friendship ended when Milo sold a diner they owned behind Eddie's back, forcing him into retirement. During their argument, Eddie realises that Milo is terminally ill and wanted to make amends before he died - the two reconcile their differences with Eddie saving Milo's life during a Mandrill attack. After the group crosses a series of rope bridges they are reunited with Alex, as his avatar Jefferson McDonough, and Bethany, operating a new avatar called Cyclone – a black horse that can only be understood by Finbar.

Working together, the party leaves the Dunes, and finds a river with the same glowing green water, allowing Spencer, Bethany, and Fridge to become their original avatars, while Eddie and Milo respectively end up as Ming and Cyclone. Shortly after changing characters, Jurgen's mercenaries capture Eddie and Milo. The group infiltrates Jurgen's fortress separately to rescue teammates and steal the Falcon Jewel. While scaling the ice wall to the fortress, Martha asks Spencer why he abandoned his old life and her, prompting Spencer to admit that Martha's success at college made him insecure about himself. Martha consoles him and reminds him that he needs his friends when he is scared and insecure. When the confrontation turns into a battle, Spencer pursues Jurgen to his airship, while the others distracted his men. Finding himself unable to beat Jurgen, Spencer discovers he is weak to the Jumanji Berry, incapacitating him long enough to send him plummeting to his death. Discovering Cyclone has retractable wings that allow him to fly, Eddie and Milo work together to rescue Spencer and bring the recovered Falcon's Heart to the sun, calling out "Jumanji" and ending the drought.

Returning the necklace to Nigel for safekeeping, the group is surprised when Milo elects to stay behind and protect the land. Upon returning to the real world, Spencer teaches his grandfather about video games. Eddie, having gotten over his resentment, convinces Nora the owner of his old diner to hire him on as a manager. His grandson and friends are there too for their reunion.

In a mid-credits scene, the heating mechanic who Spencer's mother hired finally shows up, only to be drawn to the game. The flock of ostriches from the game rush past the diner.

Cast
  • Dwayne Johnson as Dr. Xander "Smolder" Bravestone: Eddie's avatar (Later Spencer's again) who, unlike previously, has a weakness: he cannot escape the wrath of Jumanji NPC Switchblade without dying.
    • Johnson also portrays Bravestone's father in a flashback scene in the film, where Zachary Tzegaegbe portrayed a young Bravestone while Jennifer Patino portrayed Bravestone's mother.
  • Jack Black as Professor Sheldon "Shelly" Oberon: Fridge's avatar (Later Martha's temporarily then to Fridge's avatar again and later Bethany's again) who develops a new skill (geometry) and three new weaknesses (heat, sun and sand; simply for comedic effect as the first level is in a desert).
  • Kevin Hart as Franklin "Mouse" Finbar: Milo's avatar (Later Fridge's again) who develops a new skill: linguistics, the ability to communicate with animals.
  • Karen Gillan as Ruby Roundhouse: Martha's avatar (and temporarily Fridge's then to Martha's avatar again) who gets a new skill: nunchuck mastery.
  • Nick Jonas as Jefferson "Seaplane" McDonough: Alex's avatar who is an aircraft pilot.
  • Awkwafina as Ming Fleetfoot: Spencer's new avatar (Later Eddie's) whose character's background is a thief with skills in burglary, pick-pocketing and lock picking, and who has a weakness to pollen.
  • Rory McCann as Jurgen the Brutal, an iron-fisted and arrogant warlord, responsible for murdering Bravestone's parents years ago. Like the game avatars, he has a list of strengths and weaknesses. Johnson later revealed that Jurgen is an avatar not a NPC.[5]
  • Danny DeVito as Edward "Eddie" Gilpin: Spencer's grandfather. He is retired, following the sale of a diner he owned in Brantford, with little understanding of video games.
  • Danny Glover as Milo Walker: Eddie's estranged friend and diner co-owner, before its sale ended their friendship. Characters Milo Walker and Bethany Walker are not related.
  • Alex Wolff as Spencer Gilpin
  • Morgan Turner as Martha Kaply
  • Ser'Darius Blain as Anthony "Fridge" Johnson
  • Madison Iseman as Bethany Walker
  • Colin Hanks as Alex Vreeke
  • Rhys Darby as Nigel Billingsley
  • Bebe Neuwirth as Nora Shepherd, in a cameo reprising her role from the original 1995 film.[6]

In addition, the film also cast a number of actors for supporting roles, which included: Dania Ramirez as Jumanji NPC Flame; Massi Furlan as Jumanji NPC Switchblade; John Ross Bowie as Cavendish, the butler of Jurgen; and Lamorne Morris as a heater repairman.[6] Lucy DeVito portrays Maiden, while Marin Hinkle returned alongside returning cast members from Welcome to the Jungle to reprise her role as Mrs. Gilpin. Ashley Scott was originally intended to also appear as Ashley, but her scenes were later dropped from the final edit.

Production

Development

In February 2018, it was announced that Kasdan would direct the sequel, with Rosenberg and Pinkner again writing the script and Johnson, Hart, Black, and Gillan reprising their roles.[7]

On February 22, 2019, Black confirmed the new film as being a fourth Jumanji film because of Zathura: A Space Adventure (2005), serving as the second film and sharing continuity with the other films of the series, with Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle serving as the third film.[8] According to Kasdan the film used the working title J-19.[6] In July 2019, the film's title was revealed as Jumanji: The Next Level.[9]

Casting

In January 2019, Awkwafina, Danny DeVito, and Danny Glover joined the film.[10][11] In February 2019, Alex Wolff, Ser'Darius Blain, Madison Iseman, Morgan Turner, and Nick Jonas were announced to reprise their roles.[12][13] In March 2019, Dania Ramirez joined the cast of the film.[14] That same month, it was announced Rhys Darby would reprise his role in the film.[15] In May 2019, it was announced Colin Hanks would reprise his role.[16]

Filming

Filming began on January 21, 2019, and took place in Atlanta, New Mexico, Calgary, Fortress Mountain Resort, Imperial Dunes, and Hawaii before wrapping on May 11.[17][18][19] Johnson made a reported $23.5 million for his role.[20]

Music

Henry Jackman scored the film after having worked on Welcome to the Jungle.

Release

In the United States and Canada, the film was released on December 13, 2019, in RealD 3D, Dolby Cinema, IMAX, IMAX 3D, 4DX, and ScreenX Formats. The movie was released on December 5, 2019, in China, Singapore, Malaysia, and several other Asian countries (and also in Czechia). In the Nordic countries and the Netherlands, the film premiered in cinemas on December 6, 2019. The film's Australian release date was December 26, 2019.[21]

Home media

The film was released on digital by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment on March 3, 2020, and was released on 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, and DVD on March 17, 2020.[22][23][24]

Reception

Box office

Jumanji: The Next Level grossed $319.2 million in the United States and Canada, and $480.9 million in other countries, for a worldwide total of $800.1 million, against a production budget of about $125 million.[2][4] Deadline Hollywood calculated the net profit of the film to be $236 million.[25]

In the United States and Canada, the film was released alongside Black Christmas and Richard Jewell, and was projected to gross $45–55 million from 4,227 theaters in its opening weekend.[26] The film made $19.7 million on its first day, including $4.7 million from Thursday night previews. It went on to debut to $59.3 million, topping the box office.[3][27][28] It made $26.5 million in its second weekend, finishing second behind Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.[29] The following weekend the film made $35.3 million (a total of $59.2 million over the five-day Christmas period), then $26.5 million the next, remaining in second behind The Rise of Skywalker both times.[30][31] After the COVID-19 pandemic closed most theaters across the U.S. and Canada in March, the film continued to play at drive-ins during the following weeks; it made $217,800 in its 24th weekend and $186,800 in its 25th weekend.[32] The film passed the $800 million mark worldwide on July 7, 2020, thanks to drive-in grosses in the U.S. and theaters re-opening in other countries.[4]

Critical response

On Rotten Tomatoes the film has an approval rating of 72% based on 239 reviews, with an average rating of 6.07/10. The website's critics consensus reads, "Like many classic games, Jumanji: The Next Level retains core components of what came before while adding enough fresh bits to keep things playable."[33] On Metacritic, the film has a weighted average score of 58 out of 100 based on 37 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews."[34] Audiences polled by CinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale, while those at PostTrak gave it an average 3.5 out of 5 stars, with 58% saying they would definitely recommend it.[3]

Peter Debruge of Variety (magazine) wrote: "More often than not, effects-driven blockbusters get dumber as the series goes along, but Jumanji: The Next Level invents some fun ideas to keep things fresh." Debruge calls Johnsons' Danny DeVito impression "unintentionally hilarious", and is mildly critical of some of the off color jokes, but concludes "The storytelling may be sloppy in parts, but the cast’s collective charisma more than compensates."[35] Peter Travers of Rolling Stone is positive about the remixing of the characters has "major comedy benefits" and Travers welcomes the introduction of Awkwafina. He found the plot difficult to follow and not worth the effort, but says "What matters are the laughs and the FX".[36] Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian wrote: "What gives Jumanji its likability is that it has the emphases and comedy beats of an animation, but also the performance technique of live action – and the occasional reshuffling of avatars and players lets the actors show off a little bit further. Jumanji’s next level is rather satisfying."[37]

Sequel

Dwayne Johnson revealed in a December 2019 interview that another character in the world of Jumanji is an actual avatar, the villainous Jurgen the Brutal, and that it would be explored in a potential sequel.[5] In March 2020, Jake Kasdan confirmed early developments for a follow-up film.[38][39] Kasdan confirmed plans to maintain the core cast of the previous two films.[40] The following month, the filmmaker stated that the story for the next installment is in development.[6]

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References
  1. "Jumanji: The Next Level". British Board of Film Classification. November 27, 2019. Retrieved December 5, 2019.
  2. "Jumanji: The Next Level (2019)". Box Office Mojo. IMDb. Retrieved March 17, 2020.
  3. D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 15, 2019). "How Sony Took 'Jumanji' To 'The Next Level' With A $60M+ Opening; 'Richard Jewell' & 'Black Christmas' Earn Lumps Of Coal". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
  4. Nancy Tartaglione (July 8, 2020). "'Jumanji: The Next Level' Ups Game To Rock Past $800M At Worldwide Box Office". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  5. Reyes, Mike (December 31, 2019). "Dwayne Johnson Reveals Another Jumanji: The Next Level Character Is Actually An Avatar". Cinemablend. Retrieved January 11, 2020.
  6. Nemiroff, Perri (April 7, 2020). "Director Jake Kasdan Talks the Status of 'Jumanji 4' & Tricky Franchise Time Travel". Collider.
  7. Fleming, Mike Jr. (February 6, 2018). "Scott Rosenberg & Jeff Pinkner To Write 'Jumanji: Welcome To The Jungle' Sequel". Deadline Hollywood. Penske Business Media. Archived from the original on February 7, 2018. Retrieved February 6, 2018.
  8. Fandom [@getFANDOM] (February 24, 2019). "Jack Black says the next Jumanji film is actually the 4th in the series – 'You forgot about the one in space ... 'Zathura (via @jackblack|YouTube)" (Tweet). Archived from the original on August 27, 2019. Retrieved February 15, 2019 – via Twitter.
  9. Rubin, Rebecca (July 1, 2019). "'Jumanji: The Next Level' Drops First Trailer". Variety. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  10. Kroll, Justin (January 3, 2019). "Awkwafina Joins Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart in 'Jumanji' Sequel". Variety. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  11. Kroll, Justin (January 4, 2019). "Danny DeVito Joins Dwayne Johnson in 'Jumanji' Sequel (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved January 21, 2019.
  12. D'Alessandro, Anthony (February 4, 2019). "'Jumanji' Teen Gang Return For Sequel". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
  13. N'Duka, Amanda (February 6, 2019). "Nick Jonas Officially Returning For Sony's 'Jumanji' Sequel". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved February 6, 2019.
  14. D'Alessandro, Anthony (March 5, 2019). "Dania Ramirez Journeys To 'Jumanji' Sequel; James Moses Black Books 'Black And Blue'". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  15. N'Duka, Amanda (March 11, 2019). "Rhys Darby To Reprise His Role In 'Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle' Sequel". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved March 11, 2019.
  16. McVey, Ciara (May 7, 2019). "Colin Hanks Returning For 'Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle' Sequel". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 7, 2019.
  17. Marc, Christopher (October 21, 2018). "'Jumanji' Sequel To Start Filming On January 21st In Atlanta - Adds 'Captain Marvel' Art Director - GWW". thegww.com. Retrieved October 25, 2018.
  18. Jirak, Jamie (May 11, 2019). "The Rock Wraps Production on 'Jumanji' Sequel". Comic Book. Retrieved June 23, 2019.
  19. Volmers, Eric (April 10, 2019). "Jumanji sequel to film in Kananaskis next week". Calgary Herald. Retrieved July 30, 2019.
  20. Welk, Brian (August 22, 2019). "Dwayne Johnson, Chris Hemsworth Top Forbes' 2019 Highest-Paid Actors List (Photos)". TheWrap. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
  21. Weatherall, Bryan. "Jumanji 2 Australian Release Date". Resident Entertainment. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
  22. "'Jumanji: The Next Level' Blu-ray Details, Release Date & Bonus Features Revealed". Collider. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
  23. "Jumanji: The Next Level DVD Release Date". DVDs Release Dates. Retrieved February 20, 2020.
  24. "Here Are The Full Home Release Details For 'Jumanji: The Next Level'". The Hollywood News. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
  25. D'Alessandro, Anthony (April 21, 2020). "'Jumanji: The Next Level' Climbs To No. 10 On Deadline's 2019 Most Valuable Blockbuster Tournament". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
  26. Rubin, Rebecca (December 11, 2019). "Can 'Jumanji' Sequel Achieve Next-Level Box Office Success?". Variety. Retrieved December 11, 2019.
  27. Bean, Travis (December 17, 2019). "'Jumanji: The Next Level': The Latest Billion Dollar Movie". Forbes. Retrieved December 18, 2019.
  28. "Domestic 2019 Weekend 50". Box Office Mojo.
  29. D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 22, 2019). "'Star Wars: Rise Of Skywalker' Lowers Lightsaber To $177M+, Still 3rd Best December Opening – Monday AM Update". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 25, 2019.
  30. D'Alessandro, Anthony (December 28, 2019). "'Star Wars: Rise Of Skywalker' Chasing 'Last Jedi' With $76M 2nd Weekend; 'Little Women' Not So Tiny With $29M 5-Day". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 29, 2019.
  31. D'Alessandro, Anthony (January 5, 2020). "'Star Wars: Rise Of Skywalker' Dips To $34M+ Third Weekend; 'Grudge' Doesn't Scream With $11M+ & 'F' CinemaScore". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  32. Anthony D'Alessandro (June 3, 2020). "The 'Trolls World Tour' Has Held The No. 1 Spot At The Box Office Since Opening, Not 'The Wretched' – Update". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved June 3, 2020.
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  35. Debruge, Peter (December 10, 2019). "'Jumanji: The Next Level': Film Review". Variety (magazine).
  36. Travers, Peter (December 12, 2019). "'Jumanji: The Next Level': The Rock, Kevin Hart and Friends Prepare for Round Two". Rolling Stone.
  37. Bradshaw, Peter (December 10, 2019). "Jumanji: The Next Level review – Dwayne Johnson ups his comedy game". The Guardian.
  38. "Exc: Jake Kasdan talks Jumanji 3 status & why the franchise is so appealing". www.joblo.com. March 20, 2020.
  39. "Exclusive Interview – Jumanji: The Next Level director Jake Kasdan talks nods to the 1995 original, the status of Jumanji 4 and more". Flickering Myth. March 20, 2020.
  40. "Will 'Jumanji 4' Bring Back the Game Cast? Director Jake Kasdan Weighs In". Movieweb. April 6, 2020.
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