Meg 2: The Trench will arrive in cinemas later this week – but what does the sequel to Jason Statham’s 2018 shark thriller have in store?
- READ MORE: ‘The Meg’ review: – a big, fun fin flick that makes ‘Deep Blue Sea’ look positively cerebral
The first film focused on a team of underwater researchers who were attacked by a megalodon, a massive prehistoric shark previously thought to be extinct. Jonas Taylor (Statham), a tough rescue diver, was enlisted to save the team and stop the shark before it reached populated beaches.
As you’d expect, the upcoming sequel treads familiar water, although the ante has well and truly been upped this time around.
What will Meg 2: The Trench be about?
This time, Statham’s Jonas Taylor and his team take to the bottom of the ocean to explore the titular trench. However, their mission soon spirals into chaos after a mining operation sets loose all manner of massive sea creatures, including three megalodons — one of which is dubbed the largest shark ever — and a variety of other prehistoric monsters.
Meg 2: The Trench has long been in development, and was first announced in November 2018. Director Ben Wheatley revealed in June 2021 that he had spent seven months on storyboarding for the film, which began filming in January last year.
“It’s gonna be massive. It’s really really exciting,” Wheatley said in a statement to NME at the time.
The official synopsis for the film reads: “Jonas Taylor leads a research team on an exploratory dive into the deepest depths of the ocean. Their voyage spirals into chaos when a malevolent mining operation threatens their mission and forces them into a high-stakes battle for survival. Pitted against colossal, prehistoric sharks and relentless environmental plunderers, they must outrun, outsmart and outswim their merciless predators.”
Is there a trailer for Meg 2: The Trench?
The first full-length trailer for the film was released in May. You can watch it above. The final full-length trailer, which you can watch here, offers a closer look at the trench as Jonas and his team encounter the prehistoric sea creatures for the first time.
In a two-star review of the first film, NME wrote: “It doesn’t go for grisly scares or the fear of seabound isolation like The Shallows, and while there are nods to Jaws throughout – jetties dragged into open water, buckled fishing lines at the back of a fishing boat, a snack-sized dog called Pippin – it couldn’t be further from the classic Spielberg movie’s slow-and-steady tone.”
“Nope, it’s Jason Statham fighting a fucking massive shark. Nuance has been cast adrift, here. There’s a nonsensical plot about undiscovered ocean trenches, past military operations gone wrong, and – of course – a budding romantic sub-story, but following it is relatively pointless – The Meg is set-piece after set-piece, shark snack after shark snack.”
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