Why Jenna Ortega's character may be still alive in Jurassic World: Chaos Theory

The announcement of Jurassic World: Chaos Theory was a welcome surprise to fans of its prequel series, which followed the journey of six teenagers as they survived dinosaurs, robots, and corporate greed following the destruction of the Jurassic World theme park. While many were expecting to see all six protagonists return for the sequel, recent updates seem to have provided a shocking twist.

Firstly, the series' trailer hints that the influencer-turned-survivalist of the team, Brooklyn, has been killed by dinosaurs - an event framed as the catalyst that brings the rest of the gang back together. This, coupled with the fact that Jenna Ortega - who had brought Brooklyn to life in the original - is not returning for the sequel, hints that the character is really and truly dead.

However, long-term fans of Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous seem to think otherwise. If anything, prior events foreshadow that Brooklyn's death is an intentional misdirection and that the character is alive and well.

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Jurassic World: Chaos Theory trailer and promotional media hint at Brooklyn's demise

The first few minutes of the Jurassic World: Chaos Theory trailer shows Brooklyn (now in her early twenties) huddled up in the dark. She has a scared expression on her face and seems to be talking to Darius (one of the other protagonists and the de-facto leader) about being in danger. This is swiftly followed by the sudden appearance of two raptor dinosaurs behind her before the scene cuts to black.

Throughout the rest of the trailer, the other characters reference Brooklyn's supposed death, saying that she and the rest of the Nublar six were being targeted by mysterious assassins in Jurassic World: Chaos Theory.

Darius also expresses regret at Brooklyn's death, while Ben reveals that she was only the first member to be targeted and that the others are soon to follow.

The trailer is not the only piece of media to hint at Brooklyn's supposed demise, as the promotional poster also shows the rest of the cast running away from a large dinosaur. While all the events hint at a darker storyline than Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous, which had all the protagonists escape unharmed, fans refuse to believe Brooklyn is dead.

This is especially because the franchise has used a character's death as a misdirect previously, in the season 1 finale of Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous, when Ben was attacked by a flock of Pteranodon and seemingly fell to his death. However, the franchise's decision to bring him back alive and well makes it likely that Brooklyn will return.

It can be speculated that Brooklyn has been captured and is waiting for the rest of the team to rescue her. That makes more sense than the alternative, as it is unlikely that such a major character will be killed off-screen before the major events go down in Jurassic World: Chaos Theory.

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Jenna Ortega's departure is not necessarily a death sentence for Brooklyn

The cast members of Jurassic World: Camp Cretaceous have mostly returned, with Paul Mikel Williams reprising the role of Darius, Raini Rodriguez returning as Sammy, Kausar Mohammed re-enacting Yasmina's role, and Sean Giambrone lending his voice for Ben.

In light of this, Brooklyn's original voice actress Jenna Ortega departure from the show seems to lend credence to the fact that the character might not return in Jurassic World: Chaos Theory.

However, that might not entirely be true. Kenji's original actor Ryan Potter is not reprising the role of Kenji either, and the character will have Darren Barnet voicing him instead.

It is likely that whoever Brooklyn's voice actress might be for the upcoming show has not been announced yet. Ortega herself might return too, as she is heard lending her voice to Brooklyn in the trailer of Jurassic World: Chaos Theory.

Brooklyn's death, if played straight, will be a surprising and bold decision by the showrunners, and one that is unlikely to be received well by fans, especially if she is killed off off-screen.

Instead, it is likely that Brooklyn is being held captive and that her supposed death is a red herring. That would also make sense because at the end of Camp Cretaceous, she was investigating Lockwood Manor on her own which can easily lead to her capture if things went wrong.

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To see whether Jenna Ortega's Brooklyn is still really alive or not, fans have to wait for the official release date of Jurassic World: Chaos Theory, which is said to drop on May 24.