Buckle up for more body-swapping hijinks in Jumanji: Open World trailer

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Let’s face it, the mid-December box office will be dominated byAvengers: DoomsdayandDune: Part Three, but for those seeking fun holiday family fare,Jumanji: Open Worldopens the very next week on Christmas Day. Sony Pictures just released a new trailer for director Jake Kasdan’s sequel to his 2019 hit,Jumanji: The Next Level, teasing the usual wacky hijinks with a twist that calls back to the original 1995 film.

Aspreviously reported, Kasdan gave the franchise a welcome major overhaul with the release of 2017’sJumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, updating the original board game into a vintage video game and giving us a hugely entertaining action-adventure.Welcome to the Jungleracked up over $960 million at the global box office and spawned the equally successful 2019 sequelJumanji: The Next Level.

A third film was always in the cards:The Next Levelfeatured a tantalizing mid-credits scene in which a heater repairman (Lamorne Morris) visits Spencer Gilpin’s (Alex Wolff’s) house, sees the broken video game console, and inadvertently triggers the game. The COVID-19 pandemic paused the third film’s development, but things picked up again in 2024, and here we are. Per the official synopsis:

This Christmas, Dwayne Johnson, Kevin Hart, Jack Black, and Karen Gillan are reunited inJumanji: Open World, the hilarious final installment of the globally beloved action-adventure trilogy. Our heroes have escaped the perilous jungles of Jumanji before, but this time Jumanji breaks free of its console, unleashing its chaos into our world.

Star Dwayne Johnson—who plays in-game avatar Dr. Xander “Smolder” Bravestone—let slip in 2019thatThe Next Level‘s in-game villain, Jurgen the Brutal (Rory McCann), was actually the avatar of another unknown real-world player.

The entire main cast is returning: Johnson, Jack Black as Shelly Oberon, Karen Gillan as Ruby Roundhouse, Bebe Neuwirth as Nora (who also appeared in the 1995 film), Morgan Turner as Martha, Madison Iseman as Bethany, Kevin Hart as Franklin “Mouse” Finbar, Nick Jonas as Jefferson “Seaplane” McDonough, Awkwafina as Ming Flatfoot, Alex Wolff as Spencer Gilpin, and Ser’Darius Blain as Fridge Johnson. In addition, Rhys Darby is back as Nigel Billingsley, along with Danny DeVito as Spencer’s grandfather, Eddie. Dan Hildebrand plays Donatas, and Jack Jewkes plays Tyson. Burn Gorman, Nasim Pedrad, and Brittany O’Grady will also appear in as-yet-undisclosed roles.

In the trailer, the avatars and animals have spilled over into the real world, much as they did in the 1995 film. It’s only a matter of time before everyone gets sucked back into the game to set things right, with another round of body-swapping hijinks. Spencer’s mom, Janice (Marin Hinkle), ends up in Bravestone’s avatar, and Spencer takes on the Ruby Roundhouse avatar. Kitchen worker Donatas is stuck in the Shelly Oberon avatar, while Nora’s nephew Tyson ends up with Mouse Finbar’s avatar. (He has a cool backpack, even if he’s too young to handle a bazooka.)

Jumanji: Open Worldhits theaters on December 25, 2026.

Senior Writer

Senior Writer

Jennifer is a senior writer at Ars Technica with a particular focus on where science meets culture, covering everything from physics and related interdisciplinary topics to her favorite films and TV series. Jennifer lives in Baltimore with her spouse, physicist Sean M. Carroll, and their two cats, Ariel and Caliban.

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