If you’re a 90’s kid, chances are, both Ellie (Laura Dern) and Alan (Sam Neill) are synonymous with Jurassic Park for you. While Dern did not appear in Jurassic Park 2: The Lost World, the two actors did share a romantic relationship in the first film, followed by their separation toward the end of the movie as Ellie wanted children and Alan didn’t. Jurassic Park 3, however, introduced fans to a married Ellie who had children.
As much as we love the two characters, we were too naive to realize back then that the age gap between Neil and Dern wasn’t appropriate. Back in 2022, Dern, during an interview with The Times, shared her thoughts on the relationship between Ellie and Alan herself. The movie opened for theaters back in 1993 — Dern was 26 back then and Neill was 46 years old. The two characters portrayed one of the most iconic duos in Hollywood and neither of them was concerned about the age dynamics at that time. Did that age well for the actors and Jurassic Park stakeholders? Let’s find out!
What Laura Dern Has to Say About the Relationship Between Ellie and Alan
During the interview, Laura Dern said that she was unaware that the age disparity between both stars would feel so inappropriate now compared to the time when both stars were cast for this role. She further added, “It felt completely appropriate to fall in love with Sam Neill. And it was only now, when we returned in a moment of cultural awareness about the patriarchy, that I was, like, “Wow! We’re not the same age?” Sam Neill on the other hand was of the view that at the time when Jurassic Park was made, the age dynamics between both the stars weren’t unusual and it was later in the magazine of Old Geezers and Gals that he found out that it was conceived inappropriate. Needless to say, it’s a dynamic of the past now and the relationship only seemed all right because of the societal norms from back then.
The Couple’s Return in Jurassic World Dominion Felt Much Less Jarring
Both Dern and Neil reprised their roles of Ellie and Alan along with Jeff Goldblum as Dr. Ian Malcolm in 2022’s Jurassic World: Dominion, which stars Chris Pratt as the lead. The film again touched base on the relationship between Ellie and Alan and the two had a chance to reconcile as Ellie was divorced from Mark this time around. So while Jurassic World: Dominion was unable to score a good rating on IMDb and fans were left disappointed with the storyline, Alan and Ellie’s rekindling was certainly a nostalgic moment for the long-standing fans of the franchise.
However, this time around, the relationship between Dern and Neil’s characters did not feel so jarring as the two were 55 and 74 respectively at the time of the shooting. In retrospect, this is an ideal situation for Dern and critics to understand that societal norms and cultural dynamics are ever-changing. The same relationship between Alan and Ellie that feels much less jarring now in Jurassic World Dominion, could feel much more weird perhaps 20 years from now.
The Age Dynamics Root From a Time When Less Attention Was Paid to Issues Like This
With time, certain aspects of older films can be considered in a different light, indicating reevaluation by both the audiences and stars. For instance, the film Indecent Proposal, which starred Woody Harrelson, Demi Moore, and Robert Redford in lead roles, followed the story of a rich man who offered a couple one million dollars in exchange for a night with the wife. At the time, the film was met with massive criticism and cultural backlash but has since gained a cult following and is not considered iconic.
While reflecting on Ellie and Alan’s age gap in Jurassic Park, it becomes quite evident that societal norms have evolved a lot in the past decades. The elephant in the room says that they will continue to. Perhaps what’s considered appropriate now won’t be considered normal 15 years from now. Sadly, inappropriate castings have always been a thing in Hollywood. For instance, check out the most inappropriate Marvel characters ever created here.
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