The 6 Coolest Dinosaurs That Aren’t in the ‘Jurassic Park’ Films

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom arrives in theaters today, promising a lot more man-vs-dinosaur action that is sure to thrill viewers of all ages. But while every Jurassic fan has fond memories of seeing a T-Rex chase down some terrified humans for the first time, if we’re being honest, the franchise has relied on the same dinosaurs for too long. As much as we love T-Rexes, Velociraptors, Triceratops, and Pterodactyls, it might do the Jurassic series some good to give a few new dinos their moment in the spotlight. Here are six dope as hell dinosaurs that should absolutely get their cinematic debut in the next Jurassic World sequel.

Deinocheirus

These ostrich-like dinosaurs roamed the earth over 70 million years ago but were only discovered by scientists in the last decade. And since their discovery, they have become a favorite among the dino-loving community. Why? Because the Deinocheirus was an absolutely massive dinosaur. They were 33-feet long – including eight-foot long arms – and weighed an estimated 1,200 pounds. They may not look as frightening as a Velociraptor but who wouldn’t love to see a pack of Deinocheirus’ wreaking some havoc in the Twenty-First Century?

Palaeophis

Don’t let the boring name fool you, the Palaeophis is a badass marine snake that scientists believe could have been up to nearly 30 feet long (Urban legend used to claim that these dinos could be over 100 feet long, though this has been mostly debunked). Seriously, how is it possible that there have been five Jurassic movies and not one of them have featured a scene of one of these impossibly massive snakes chowing down on an unsuspecting scuba diver? This needs to be fixed as quickly as possible.

Tapejara

If your knowledge of dinosaurs came exclusively from the Jurassic franchise, you’d probably believe that Pterodactyls are the only flying dinosaurs that ever existed. But, in reality, there were tons of totally awesome winged dinos taking to the skies, including the Tapejara. The Tapejara is primarily known for their distinct crest-shaped skull and sharp claws that were absolutely perfect for climbing… or scooping up some clueless human. At this point, Pterodactyls are played out. It’s time for Tapejaras to get their shot.

Psittacosaurus

Psittacosauruses might not be the scariest dinosaurs on the list but they are likely the most well-known, at least in the paleontology community. These creatures, which are believed to be ancestors of triceratops, are one of the oldest dino species ever discovered and they have been researched extensively by scientists. Throwing these guys on screen would be a fun nod to true dino die-hards and it doesn’t hurt that, at least based on artist renderings, they would look pretty damn cool.

Anurognathus

If the insane photo above isn’t enough to convince you that these dino bats need to be on the big screen as quickly as possible, allow us the opportunity to present a few more facts to officially get you onboard. They were tiny (their wingspan is estimated to be about 14 inches long) but vicious hunters, as scientists believed that they used their small size and advanced vision to stay out of sight until it was too late for their prey.

Gigantoraptor

Gigantoraptor is inarguably the coolest name in the dino universe but are the actual creatures themselves as cool as their name? The answer is a resounding yes, as their name gives a pretty perfect description of these large and terrifying dinos. Gigantoraptors are pretty much like Raptors except for the fact that they’re, well, gigantic. They stood 16-feet tall, while a tall Velociraptor could grow up to seven feet tall. They were believed to have been less intelligent than their smaller counterparts but made up for it with sheer size.

In case you still aren’t convinced, just read this quote from Mark Norell, a paleontologist of the American Museum of Natural History in New York, who said, “I was just flabbergasted when I saw it [a Gigantoraptor] because it was so big.”