Is This the Genetically Modified Dino In ‘Jurassic World?’

When the first Jurassic World trailer hit, it gave us a solid general outline of the plot. Corporate big wigs—i.e., owners of the park—wanted bigger and badder dinos for attendees to see. So, naturally, those overseeing proceedings figured it was a solid idea to create a hybrid dinosaur bigger and nastier than the T-Rex, known as Indominus Rex. While the teaser didn’t reveal what the dinosaur looks like, new promotional material is giving us our very first look.

According to Jurassic World director Colin Trevorrow, the Indominus Rex was never meant to be some freakish half snake, half alligator monstrosity you’d find on the SyFy network. (I just wish the name didn’t sound like “abominable snowman.”) Instead, the movie attempted to use pseudo-science from the first Jurassic Park to make the dinosaur’s existence at least somewhat believable.

“The gaps in [Indominus Rex’s] sequence were filled with DNA from other specia, much like the genome in the first film was completed with frog DNA,” Trevorrow said. “I know the idea of a modified dinosaur put a lot of fans on red alert, and I understand it. But we aren’t doing anything here that (Michael) Crichton didn’t suggest in his novels.”

Indominus Rex has a more ancient look to it, like it would have existed before the Triassic period (about 231.4 million years ago); the Tyrannosaurus existed in the Maastrichtian age of the upper Cretaceous Period (about 66 to 68 million years ago). It has thorny skin, a feathered mohawk and a more elongated face; its teeth are long, sharp, while its arms (as indicated by the picture in the upper right (note feathers on the arm as well)) are capable of touching the ground. It looks like a more aggressive, agile T-Rex, which is never a good combination.

Of course, we have yet to see this guy in any actual footage, and I’m sure the filmmakers will do the best they can to keep Indominus Rex under wraps until Jurassic World is released. But this could very well be our first glimpse at the dino that will be terrorizing Peter Quill this summer.