15 Reasons Jurassic World Was Absolutely Perfect

Kids are actually a really important part of making Jurassic Park movies work. Looking back at the original, a lot of the most tense moments and memorable setpieces involved the kids in danger, often by themselves as with the Jeep sequence or the raptors in the kitchen climax. But also, with something as intense and awe inspiring as an island full of dinosaurs, it's important to be able to see that magic from a kid's perspective.

All three Jurassic Park movies had child characters in them, but the ones in The Lost World and Jurassic Park 3 definitely left a lot to be desired. But the kids here are perfect! Gray and Zach are charismatic, well developed characters who play nicely off each other, and both young actors do just as fine of a job as Joseph Mazzello and Ariana Richards did in the original.

In particular, Ty Simpkins is a huge part of the reason this movie works. You might remember him from Iron Man 3, another movie where everyone was surprised the kid character actually wasn't annoying. Gray is really more our protagonist than Chris Pratt's Owen is, and that's a really wise decision on Trevorrow's part. His excitement in the opening scenes is downright contagious, and the audience gets to experience the magic of seeing Jurassic World for the first time through the eyes of a child.