'Jumanji' movie news: New feature pays tribute to Robin Williams

The latest "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" trailer pays tribute to Robin Williams.Facebook/Jumanji

The latest preview of the upcoming movie "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" pays tribute to the original movie and its iconic protagonist, the late Robin Williams, who played Dr. Allan Parrish.

Sony Pictures has released a new trailer for the adventure comedy film, which features interviews with main cast members Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson (Dr. Smolder Bravestone), Karen Gillan (Ruby Roundhouse), Jack Black (Prof. Shelly Oberon) and Kevin Hart (Moose Finbar).

In the preview, Johnson talked about how much the original film and its main star meant to him.

"I have such a tremendous amount of love and reverence for the original movie. And what Robin meant to my family, I loved it like the world loved it," said Johnson.

While many thought that the upcoming film would be a reboot of the original, a few seconds into the trailer would say otherwise. As Johnson said, the 1996 film brought Jumanji into the real world. This sequel, however, will bring the main characters into the world of Jumanji.

In "Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle," the old board game will be upgraded to a video game console. As a game that "will always find a way to be played," it will be discovered by four curious teenagers, who after choosing their avatars, will be sucked into the game's jungle setting and transformed into the avatar of their choice.

Black said the movie is "all about survival," packed with action sequences that according to Gillan makes her "look really cool."

Despite the change in procedures, Johnson promised that "the spirit of the original movie flowed through this continuation of the Jumanji story."

The film is being helmed by "Sex Tape" and "Orange County" director Jake Kasdan, with a screenplay from Chris McKenna, Erik Sommers, Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner.

"Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle" will hit cinemas on Dec. 20.