A Jeff Goldblum Statue in London Just Appeared to Celebrate the 25th Anniversary of Jurassic Park
If ever there was a reason to book an impulsive trip to London, this is it: Overnight, a 25-foot statue of Jeff Goldblum popped up there, a far upgrade from the city’s most recent widely photographed public art: the Baby Trump balloon.
Unlike the Baby Trump balloon that followed the president around on his recent visit to the U.K., the Goldblum statue is easy on the eyes—all 330 pounds of it. As it turns out, it isn’t random but the work of British cable company Now TV as an act of celebrating the 25th anniversary of Jurassic Park. Anyone who’s watched the movie, or spent time on Twitter, will be familiar with Goldblum’s pose, which has since ascended to meme status. In the film, he strikes it after he’s chased down by dinosaurs while attempting to mislead the creatures away from kids. To properly assess the damage, Goldblum opens his shirt and exposes his chest—just as depicted in the statue.
It was all part of Goldblum’s character, Ian Malcolm, who somehow found time to charm while being stalked by dinosaurs. Goldblum opened up about his “flirtatious” character to Larry King back before the Jurassic Park was released in 1993, saying, “I thought it would be a great movie. I read the book. I read the script and it was a great story. You wanted to see the dinosaurs…and my part seemed very interesting. It makes me very passionate about my respect for nature and the misuse of science. I’m kind of the conscience of the movie—the voice of wisdom—but I’m also flirtatious and playful.”
He also explained why he ended up stripping during his now-iconic scene this past March, telling Yahoo, “It’s supposed to be Costa Rica, right? So, things are hot and I’m sure I’m in some sort of fever. So, all the logic is that we gotta get some of these wet clothes off immediately. As I remember, I don’t think anybody fought me on that.”
While Goldblum has yet to comment on the statue, his wife, Emilie Goldblum, confirmed that the actor is aware of it. “Jeff showed me this this morning, but I thought it was some sort of funny joke!” she wrote on Instagram. “Baby when can we go visit?! @jeffgoldblum ❤️❤️❤️” The good news is that they — and anyone else who desires to see Jeff Goldblum’s statue up close—have until July 26.