Jumanji Breaks Out of the Console in Open World Trailer

The jungle game is finally breaking out of the box. Sony Pictures just dropped a new trailer for Jumanji: Open World, flipping the franchise script by unleashing digital chaos directly into the real world. Instead of unsuspecting teenagers getting sucked into a vintage video game console, the perilous game elements and animals now spill out across hometown streets.

It is a direct thematic nod to the original 1995 film, reversing the dynamic that director Jake Kasdan built across his two massive box office hits. That modern overhaul began with 2017's Welcome to the Jungle, which scored a massive global haul, followed by 2019's The Next Level. Development on this final trilogy installment stalled during the pandemic before picking back up.

Now, the entire main crew returns, including Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, and Karen Gillan. Yet the real hook lies in the chaotic avatar mismatch as real-world players inherit the digital bodies. Our read is that shifting the action back to the real world lets the franchise mine fresh comedy from everyday bystanders navigating oversized digital avatars.

In the footage, Spencer's mom winds up inside Johnson's Bravestone avatar, while Spencer himself takes on Ruby Roundhouse.

Kitchen worker Donatas ends up stuck as Shelly Oberon, and young Nora's nephew finds himself handling Mouse Finbar's gear.

Whether this role-reversal can capture the magic of the previous billion-dollar outings remains to be seen when the film arrives in theaters on Christmas Day.

Will reversing the portal revitalize the formula, or will the open world lose its containment focus?