Why Steven Spielberg Turned Down Jackie Chan's Jurassic Park Pitch

When looking at American cinema of the late 1980s to the early 1990s, two of the most prominent names within that era come to mind: Steven Spielberg and Jackie Chan. Spielberg's filmography dominated Hollywood throughout the 1980s, serving as a prominent influence in popular culture that helped define the decade. As for Chan, his prolific career in China started to gain prominence within mainstream North America, particularly with his 1995 action comedy, "Rumble in the Bronx."

In 1993, Steven Spielberg had, on paper, the most successful year any filmmaker has had in Hollywood history. For starters, his dinosaur blockbuster, "Jurassic Park," became the highest-grossing film not just of that year, but of all time at the worldwide box office, topping his previous record that "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial" had held since 1982. That same year, "Schindler's List" hit theaters to universal acclaim, winning him his first two Academy Awards, including Best Director and Best Picture. Spielberg continued to ascend in Hollywood throughout the 1990s, roughly around the same time Jackie Chan hit his mainstream American breakthrough, with "Rumble in the Bronx" and "Rush Hour" in particular turning him into a major draw. As Jackie Chan's star began to rise in North America, he expressed admiration for filmmakers whom he would love to work with, including George Lucas, Francis Ford Coppola, James Cameron, and, of course, Steven Spielberg. Chan had a particular interest in combining his action filmmaking sensibilities with the visual effects that American blockbusters have pioneered.

With this in mind, one could only imagine the massive box office success a "Jurassic Park" film starring Chan would be! Unfortunately, such an irresistible concept never came into fruition.

Steven Spielberg and Jackie Chan's paths would not cross until the early 2000s, when Chan signed on to star in "The Tuxedo" for DreamWorks, a role that not only challenged him to master something beyond kung fu, but he also accepted primarily to have a meeting with Spielberg. Chan reflected on his meeting with Spielberg in an interview with Tribute:

"Well, at first my manager told me about this DreamWorks movie by Steven Spielberg and said, he wants to meet you. So I said, O.K. When I came to Hollywood, there were two people I wanted to meet. One was Steven Spielberg and the second was George Lucas. I just think that the two of them are geniuses. When I met Spielberg, I was so excited, but he was just like a normal person. But what made me so happy was the first time that he saw me, he held out his hand and said, 'Jackie, hi, can you give me your autograph because my son just loves you.'"

Jackie Chan's interest in American VFX played a factor in his interest in meeting with Steven Spielberg. Interestingly enough, his excitement over the dinosaurs featured in "Jurassic Park" led to him pitching an idea of him appearing in one of those films, due to his desire to "walk with dinosaurs" on the big screen. According to a 2001 interview with Blackfilm, Steven Spielberg dismissed the idea, citing that audiences like to see Chan in his own action films, specifically in his martial arts and comedic physicality, which may not lend well to the "Jurassic Park" series.

The 2025 summer blockbuster season gave audiences a chance to see both Jackie Chan and dinosaurs on the big screen. Chan reprised his role as Mr. Han in the legacy sequel, "Karate Kid: Legends," which hit theaters in late May and is now available to own on Digital HD. Meanwhile, "Jurassic World Rebirth" is now playing in theaters worldwide, proving that even after over 30 years, audiences can still visit their local multiplex to catch a film starring Jackie Chan or revisit the cinematic adventures of dinosaurs walking the Earth.