- "When she looks at you, you can see she's working things out."
- —Robert Muldoon after watching The Big One devour a cow(src)
The Big One (nicknamed by Robert Muldoon) was the alpha-female of the Velociraptors in Jurassic Park, as well as the main antagonist of the movie along with her pack.
Though her name may suggest that she is the largest raptor in her pack, there is no evidence that Stan Winston Studio nor Industrial Light and Magic made one of the raptors in Jurassic Park larger or with unique physical traits than the others and evidence points toward her being physically identical to the other raptors in her pack. Her name may just be a reference to the fact that she is the leader of her pack or in other words "the big one in charge".
Biography
Origins
All Velociraptors, including the Big One, were initially bred on Site B,[1] particularly a compound owned and operated by InGen.[2] Eight raptors were transported to Isla Nublar, the site of InGen's upcoming Jurassic Park theme resort.[3]
Rise to Leadership
When the Big One came in she took over the pride and killed all but two of the other raptors. She commanded her two remaining subordinates to attack the security fencing. Muldoon claimed that in comparison to the other raptors, the Big One had an extremely high problem-solving intelligence, remembering the location of certain weak spots in the fencing and where feeders would come to feed the animals as stated.[3]
As a result, the raptors had to be transported into a special holding pen to be fed by an automated feeding system to make sure the stayed in.[3]
Breakout
When the power was cut by Dennis Nedry during the Isla Nublar Incident, Nedry's computer confirmed that the Raptor pen was still active, as Nedry knew full well how dangerous the Raptors were.[3]
Later, when the staff decided to reboot the power to purge the computer system of Nedry's virus, it inadvertently shut down the fences in the Raptor's holding pen as well. Unknown to the survivors, the three Raptors broke out of confinement.[3]
None of the raptors, including The Big One, survived the incident. It is unknown how The Big One died or what actions she did in the incident. It is possible that The Big One may have been the first raptor that entered the kitchen of the Visitor Center as this raptor snaps at the second raptor that enters, a behavior that was also exhibited in Blue, the beta of the Jurassic World Velociraptor Pack, who once snapped at the youngest of the pack Charlie during a training session with Owen Grady. But ultimately, it is truly unknown which raptor in the incident was The Big One.
Jurassic Park: The Game
Dr. Laura Sorkin, makes reference to the Big One's escape attempt in her journal: "I am getting so sick of [John] Hammond! I can't believe he ordered ANOTHER group of Raptors to [Isla Nublar] from Site B after what happened last time!"[4]
Movie Quotes
- "They show extraordinary intelligence, even problem-solving intelligence. Especially the big one. We bred eight originally, but when she came in she took over the pride and killed all but two of the others. That one... when she looks at you, you can see she's working things out." - Muldoon
Behind the scenes
The Big One is rather interesting among named dinosaurs in the franchise because despite being popular with fans, she has no unique physical characteristics and most of her biography is merely speculated. It is popularly believed that she was the raptor responsible for the demise of Jophery Brown and later Robert Muldoon as well as being the raptor that survives the kitchen and gives the Tyrannosaurus Rexy her signature neck scars.