Story quality aside, one good thing that Jurassic World: Rebirth brought us were some bold and fresh designs for the prehistoric animals previously featured in the franchise. The Tyrannosaurus, Mosasaurus, Spinosaurus, Compsognathus, Velociraptor (briefly featured as they were), and Quetzalcoatlus all got a spiffy makeover. In the case of the Quetzalcoatlus, it was less accurate than the Dominion version but still well designed, but I digress. Another familiar face that made a brief cameo was the Dilophosaurus and it was nice to see it featured in two back-to-back movies after its long hiatus. Rebirth’s Dilophosaurus came equipped with a vibrant red and yellow, leopard spotted frill, and I was immediately taken by it when I saw it in the film’s trailer. Now, for 2026, Mattel has reproduced that Dilophosaurus in toy form.
Mattel made a Jurassic Park styled HC Dilophosaurus in 2022, but it had a short shelf life and poor distribution, making this new one a most welcome addition to the Hammond Collection. I own (and reviewed) the JP Dilophosaurus, but I couldn’t resist pairing the Rebirth one alongside it. Besides, this is not a simple repaint. There are some minor changes that make looking at this version worthwhile.
This figure is the same size as the previous Hammond Collection Dilophosaurus. It stands about 2.75” (6.99 cm) tall at the hips and measures 8.25” (20.96 cm) long. While the actual Dilophosaurus measured 20’ (6 meters) or more long, the JP version tops out at 10’ (3 meters). Scaled down from the movie’s length the figure comes out at 1/14 in scale. It’s too large to properly scale with the generally 1/18 Hammond Collection and closer in scale with the now defunct Amber Collection, which was produced in 1/12 scale.
The figure has 16 points of articulation. The jaw can open but, on my copy, it cannot close completely and has a slight underbite. The head is articulated at its base and at the base of the neck with ball/hinge joints. The range of motion is excellent. You can get the figure to look over its shoulder, fold the neck back into an S curve, and look down at the ground to feed or drink. The range of motion is better without the neck frills though.
The arms are articulated at the shoulders and elbows with ball/hinge joint. The legs can pivot outwards slightly and rotate around at the hips. The knees, ankles, and toes have ball/hinge joints. The previous Dilophosaurus had no ankle articulation. The rubbery snap-on tail can rotate around and is bendable thanks to the wire inside it.
Once again, the HC Dilophosaurus comes with two clip-on versions of the frill, one that’s relaxed and another that’s fully fanned out. The relaxed frill is not the same as the one that came with the previous Dilophosaurus, it is longer, hanging down past the base of the neck. This limits the movement of the neck somewhat, but it looks much better, it’s also more finely detailed with loose folds of relaxed skin. The expanded frill looks the same, minus the paintjob, but that’s fine since the older frill was one of that toy’s best features. Since the two figures are largely identical you can swap their frills if you like, which offers you some cool new color combos.
This version of the Dilophosaurus comes with a new head sculpt and smaller feet, with the head being deeper and boxier. With the new head you also get more finely sculpted teeth. Although Mattel briefly experimented with glass eyes on small figures they’ve now done away with them across the board and that brief experiment was bracketed by both of the Dilophosaurus toys, so we never got a Dilophosaurus with glass eyes. The rest of the body appears identical to its predecessor. The smaller feet look much better, but a bit of stability has been sacrificed with the downsizing.
This Dilophosaurus is painted in somber earth tones, with a beige body and khaki blotches running down the sides. Olive green striping runs down the back, from the nape to the tail and transitions to an entirely green tail at the end. The cranium is dark tan with orange crests, and the eyes are yellow with black, elliptical pupils. The teeth are white and the tongue and rictus tissue are pink, but the roof of the mouth is not painted. Aside from the unpainted hallux toes, the rest of the claws are dark brown.
The expanded frill transitions from vibrant red, orange, yellow, and back to red, like a sunset. It is edged in brown and the entire back of the frill is brown but in the film’s animal the back of the frill is marked the same as the front. Black spots and speckles are spattered along the sides of the frill. The frill has a glossy sheen to it, which makes it that much more vibrant. The closed frill is a blend of reds, oranges, and yellows.
In terms of accuracy to what’s seen in the film, the toy comes close enough. The Dilophosaurus scene is very brief, but it looks darker and more mottled than what we get with this toy. The crests on the movie version were only edged in orange, not entirely orange like we see here but I like this better. The frill is the main focal point and looks accurate enough. The eyes are accurately colored, but the pupils should probably be round. Any inaccuracies are easy for me to overlook though, since I find this paintjob to be an attractive one. The brightly colored frill contrasts strikingly against the more naturalistic colors on the body.
The Hammond Collection Rebirth Dilophosaurus offers collectors a second chance at a Dilophosaurus within this line with improvements like ankle articulation, and without being a direct copy of its predecessor. Plus, it sports the lovely frill of the Rebirth variant, which is the most visually appealing Dilophosaurus since the 1993 version. Whether you have the previous Dilophosaurus or not, this one is worth adding to your collection.
All articles on the Dinosaur Toy Blog are written without the use of 'AI'
