Dr Lewis Dodgson appeared in one brief scene in the original Jurassic Park. Now he’s back as the major villain in Jurassic World Dominion.
Lewis Dodgson has a small but memorable role in 1993’s Jurassic Park. Dressed in a half-hearted disguise, the character meets Dennis Nedry in a restaurant in Costa Rica.
The pair discuss their plan to steal dinosaur embryos, Dodgson pays Nedry, and then gives him a can of shaving foam with a false bottom to store the goods.
Dodgson then pays the bill for Nedry’s food, and that’s the last we see of the character in the Jurassic movies. Until now.
What role does Lewis Dodgson play in Jurassic World Dominion?
Jurassic World Dominion takes place nearly 40 years after the events of Jurassic Park, and Lewis Dodgson is now CEO of Biosyn, a company that specialises in genetic engineering.
The character is played by Campbell Scott in the new film, who says that he looked to the original Michael Crichton book for inspiration.
Scott explains: “Dodgson had a much bigger presence in the books than he did in Jurassic Park, and even though the story that the character follows in the books is different from Dominion, I wanted to bring some of the elements that Crichton put into the character to the screen.”
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Of his personality, Scott says “Dodgson and Biosyn operate on a rather shady level. He’ll stop at nothing to get information from wherever he can. But, like almost every villain, Dodgson doesn’t think he’s a villain. In a way, I think Dodgson started out with a bit of a stunted personality, but he was talented at utilizing technology for science. And when he got a taste of what power and money could get him, he started to morph into that person.
“In the books, there are moments where Dodgson is just a plain sociopath, but it’s not as much fun to play a plain sociopath. It’s much more interesting to play a sociopath who has a lot of depth and has interesting intentions behind their actions.”
Why is a different actor playing Lewis Dodgson in Jurassic World: Dominion?
Cameron Thor played Lewis Dodgson in Jurassic Park, but in 2016, the actor was sentenced to six years in prison for sexual assault. The role was therefore recast for Jurassic World Dominion.
Campbell Scott – best known for his work in TV shows Damages and House of Cards, and movies Dying Young and Singles – now plays Lewis Dodgson.
Writer-director Colin Trevorrow says Scott brings out the strange in the character: “Campbell Scott’s performance is so nuanced, rich, deep and weird,” Trevorrow explains. “He found this way to create a character that feels like a bit of a hybrid of characters we know in the real world…but is still his own nasty dude. As you realize how awful he is, hopefully, you’ll be rooting for his comeuppance…should it happen.”
Jurassic World hits UK and US screens on June 10.