Wicked’s Jonathan Bailey ‘risked being seconds from death’ filming Jurassic World Rebirth

Bridgerton star Jonathan Bailey has opened up about joining the Jurassic Park franchise, with him appearing alongside Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali in the new film

Jonathan Bailey in a blue shirt, brown jacket and beige hat.
Jonathan Bailey has spoken about working on Jurassic World Rebirth(Image: Kate Green / Getty Images)

Actor Jonathan Bailey has teased that he risked his life whilst working on Jurassic World Rebirth. He’s revealed that he filmed alongside potentially lethal snakes for his role but shared his excitement over the experience.

Jonathan, 37 – known for his roles in Bridgerton and more recently Wicked – said he was told that the serpents could kill him within seconds on the set of the Jurassic World film, which is set to be released next month. He’s shared that he was instructed on safety measures to avoid a fatal encounter.

As reported by the Daily Star, Jonathan recalled: “When you’re making a movie, you want to feel the world of the movie as much as possible.” He went on to say that he worked on scenes in snake-infested waters for the project.

He said: “And my gosh, do you feel it when you’re up to your waist in snake-infested waters. You have snake wranglers around you who do make you feel safe, but they also say things like ‘be careful around this one. If you get bit, you die in 10 seconds’.”

Bechir Sylvain, Jonathan Bailey and Scarlett Johansson in a river filming a scene for Jurassic World Rebirth.
Jonathan Bailey (centre), pictured with co-stars Bechir Sylvain (left) and Scarlett Johansson (right), stars in the Jurassic World Rebirth(Image: Jasin Boland/Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment via AP)

He expressed excitement over appearing in the franchise through, saying: “That kind of moment speaks to the visceral thrills that Jurassic movies are all about! I had never had that kind of experience on a set before. It was all very ­exciting and I hope it’s matched by the film.”

Jonathan suggested that he didn’t shy away from stunts whilst on location in Thailand. Describing one intense scene from the production, as reported by the outlet, he said that his “inner child” was “screaming with delight”.

He said: “We had to shoot a scene where my character must pull someone back into a boat because she’s falling off the side. I had water cannons blasting me, the boat’s flipping around, and my inner child, which isn’t all that inner, was just screaming with delight.”

Jonathan stars as palaeontologist Dr Henry Loomis in Jurassic World Rebirth, which is the seventh instalment in the long-running film franchise that previously starred Chris Pratt. He leads the cast with Scarlett Johansson and Mahershala Ali.

Scarlett Johansson and Jonathan Bailey stood at a desk together for a scene from Jurassic World Rebirth.
He’s spoken about working on the film ahead of its release and shared his excitement over joining the long-running franchise(Image: Jasin Boland/Universal Pictures and Amblin Entertainment via AP)

Jonathan has shared that he relished the opportunity to play the character. He said about his role in Jurassic World Rebirth: “To play Henry, who embodies the love of nature and our best curiosities about it, was great fun.”

It’s the latest high-profile role in Jonathan’s career. In recent years, he’s starred as Fiyero Tigelaar in Wicked (2024). He’s set to reprise the role in sequel Wicked: For Good (2025), which is scheduled to be released in November.

Jonathan is also known for playing Lord Anthony Bridgerton in Netflix series Bridgerton. The show launched on the streaming platform in 2020 and his character was the focus of the second season, which aired in 2022.

He’s teased that he’s been a fan of Jurassic Park for years, having been introduced to the franchise as a child. He said: “I was five when my family took me to Jurassic Park, so a questionable choice by my parents. The characters were so vivid and because it was Spielberg, it was a sumptuous escapist delight.”

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