Here's why LEGO Jurassic Park's T. rex skeleton is tan (and not white)

The design team behind LEGO Jurassic Park 76968 Dinosaur Fossils: Tyrannosaurus rex chose the colour of the skeleton for one specific reason.

LEGO Insiders who are fans of prehistoric builds will have plenty to sink their teeth into today, following the early release for members of 76968 Dinosaur Fossils: Tyrannosaurus rex. The LEGO Jurassic Park set will undoubtedly be stomping its way into many collections, with the 1:12 scale skeleton coming in at a whopping 3,145 pieces and standing over 33cm high.

In a recent roundtable interview with Brick Fanatics, the design team behind 76968 Dinosaur Fossils: Tyrannosaurus rex discussed how the LEGO Jurassic Park set came about, the research that went into the build and how the model manages to strike a balance between delicate and sturdy.

In addition, LEGO designer Benjamin Liboriussen also talked about why 76968 Dinosaur Fossils: Tyrannosaurus rex is primarily a specific colour, a decision that connected the skeleton set to an existing model.

“We already had [76964 Dinosaur Fossils: T. rex Skull] in tan, so we wanted to continue,” explained Benjamin. “When we looked back at what we considered for that skull, we also had versions in white.

"But when we look at reference, when we look at museums and bones in real-life, [skeletons] have a tan or sometimes grey colour to them. So we thought it would be more accurate to put it in tan. We also had fewer colour changes in tan than we had in white.”

Previous LEGO dinosaur skeleton models such as 21320 Dinosaur Fossils and a build included in 10326 Natural History Museum were indeed white, but the team’s colour selection for the set still required a few hurdles to be overcome.

“We had a small palette of recoloured elements to make it more tan,” said Benjamin. “We’re selling a skeleton and there’s a lot to see through in the model. So it was a challenge for us to make both a nice building experience and a model that doesn’t have pink pieces all over it!”

Insiders can get their hands on 76968 Dinosaur Fossils: Tyrannosaurus rex starting today for £219.99 / $249.99 / €249.99, while everyone else can grab the LEGO Jurassic Park model from March 15.

To find out everything you need to know about 76968 Dinosaur Fossils: Tyrannosaurus rex, be sure to check out our full review of the set here and an in-depth look at its companion minifigures here.

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