The Meg 2: The Trench
one thousand thousand 2 : The Trenchwas the follow - up to the 2018 surprise monster movie hitThe Meg . That first flick starred Jason Statham as Jonas Taylor , a military personnel who was living a nonsocial life after a gang he was sent to save decease in a mysterious deep - ocean incident . He believed that a giant underwater creature had attacked the submarine , but the crew ’s doctor deemed him mentally unfit to continue . InThe Meg , Jonas returns to rescue his ex - wife , who is trapped in a deep submerged trench , only for the deed to unleash two megalodons on the world .
As a subsequence , Meg 2 : The Trenchneeded to up the action and hopefully increase the number of monsters . This movie , as was the first , spirit and die out as a vitamin B complex - grade goliath pic , albeit with a much large budget . As expected , when the film strike theaters , critic turn up their olfactory organ atMeg 2 . Surprisingly , many audience members also snubbed the 2023 film , disregard it for its scientific inaccuracy and farfetched situations , have me wonder if they even knew what movie they were going to watch when they step into the theater .
Critics Made Meg 2 A Rotten Tomatoes Bomb
They Rated It 27% Rotten
WhenThe Megarrived in theatre in 2018 , film critic were not that impressed . The film receive a 47 % Rotten Tomatoes score , while audiences afford it an even lower 44 % grievance . However , despite this , the first motion-picture show was a massive success , throw $ 527 million worldwide . While critics and audience members look down on the film , it was a democratic hit , and this justify a sequel . Even when critics saw that their initial reaction toThe Megwere the antonym of what theatergoers think , they followed it up with even bad review for the sequel .
Meg 2 : The Trench pits Jason Statham ’s Jonas against a tierce of giant shark , with the volatile ending provide the door open for another sequel .
However , the 2d clock time around , critic and audiences saw the numbers racket even more divided . critic hatedMeg 2even more than the first movie , yet audiences gave it a much higher 73 % evaluation this time around . Neither critics nor audience penis knew what to expect from the first film , which has become a cult favorite , but the second time around , audiences know what they were getting with the sequel , while critic still seemed to hold it to a higher measure despite its devil moving picture leanings .
Some Critics Blasted Meg 2’s Scientific Inaccuracies
They Felt The Movie’s Events Couldn’t Have Really Happened
When look at the criticism , there were some sensible explanations why the critics did n’t likeMeg 2 : The Trench . However , there were also very bizarre reasons as to why it was so traduce . In aRedditthreadthat was mostly dedicated to hating the moving-picture show , some people seemed stuck on the fact thatwhat happened in the moving-picture show was not scientifically accurate . There were two big things that really shook people up when it came to the fictional film not being based in existent - life skill :
" It was the science that did me in . I ’m all for around the bend hand - waving of science for the purpose of hanging of unbelief ! But the whole scene where they ’re at the deepest part of the deepest oceanic abyss of the sea , and Statham needs to FREEDIVE through the water supply , and the one character laugh and goes " You do n’t see fish swimming around in suit of armour , do you ? "
It seems weird for the subsequence to a film where Jason Statham pretty much punched a Meg in the expression to get ding for bad science . In the first movie , there were plenty of implausible scenes and events that were easily insufferable . However , Meg 2hastoo many people complaining about the idea that Jason Statham ’s character could swim that deep without imploding , which does n’t calculate for the fabricated mutated fish creature trying to wipe out him as well .
Critics Called Meg 2 Unrealistic
The “Unrealistic” Moments Are Creature Feature Genre Tropes
At the same time , many fans and critics felt the movie was n’t naturalistic , which is another unusual charge . This is a motion picture about small dinosaur that came out of the trench , another megalodon , and a kraken . Some of the complaint have merit , such as whenhumans have decided they can actually prepare a Megwith a clicker . agree toDaily Beastcritic Nick Schager , this was just the start of what he hated about the moving-picture show :
" One Meg has been given the name Haiqi by scientist Jiuming ( Wu Jing ) and is being kept in a Chinese inquiry adroitness as a veritable pet . This is the height of amentia , and the musical theme that hero Jonas ( Statham ) , who previously fight one of these creature , is OK with it piss no more sensation . Then again , almost nothing in this misfire does , including Jiuming ’s impression that he can use a hand clicker to aim Haiqi to act . "
However , while this is a real complaint , it is a figure of speech of sea wolf beast and monster movies . InDeep Blue Sea , the scientists were cloning dangerous sharks and often swim with them . InLake Placid , a kind senior citizen was feeding Bos taurus to gargantuan alligators . InJurassic Park , they cloned serious dinosaur for the world to peer at in a zoological garden - like experience . Nothing in these movies is naturalistic , and if they were , there would n’t be any danger at all .
What Was Really Wrong With Meg 2?
The Cast Was Weaker, But The Direction Was Improved
There are two things that hurtMeg 2 : The Trench . For one matter , Meg 2 ’s cast was a huge letdown after the first film . That first pic had great performances by Jason Statham , Li Bingbing , Rainn Wilson , Cliff Curtis , Winston Chao , Ruby Rose , Page Kennedy , and Robert Taylor . Of those whiz , only Statham , Curtis , and Kennedy returned . With that said , Kennedy as DJ was a highlight in the sequel , a rare character who improved himself in case something like this bump again .
million 2 : The Trench premiered on August 4 , 2023 , and the sequel to the 2018 Jason Statham film has received scathing reviews on Rotten Tomatoes .
unluckily , a now grown - up Sophia Cai as Meiying was not very good as the main female lead and Jonas ’s surrogate daughter . Li Bingbing was omit , as her eccentric of Suyin died in between the movies . While that was a bragging loss , it did land up some interesting discourse , as Suyin did a lot of dumb thing in the first movie that should have kill her , so it was not a surprise that she would at long last die . However , the new shape inMeg 2was not up to par with the first movie .
The other big charge was n’t really comely , though . Jon Turtletaub directed the first movie , and with past hits likeNational TreasureandThe Sorcerer ’s Apprentice , he deliver what most fans expect . Ben Wheatley directedMeg 2 , and many sports fan expected so much more . Wheatley continue eff for dark , critically acclaim picture likeKill ListandHigh - Rise , and this seemed like a stone’s throw - down . But honestly , everyone deserves to make a fun movie sometimes .
Meg 2 Was Meant To Be Dumb Fun
Most Critics Took The Movie Too Seriously
One devotee in the aforementionedRedditthread came to the motion-picture show ’s defence and had a really ripe explanation for why they like it — they know they were watching a giant fiend moving picture . ThisRedditorsaid they were disappointed with the first picture show , but lie with the continuation , writing ,
" If you are going to tip into ridiculous then go all the way not seek to be Jaws at the same time like the first movie .. It had more submersed action at law , more megs , a giant squid .. I really bid I did n’t listen to the negative review and skip over determine it in the movie theater . "
What Has Meg 2’s Cast & Crew Said About The Movie?
They Wanted It To Be A Fun Experience
It seemed almost shocking that indie repulsion darling Ben Wheatley take on the job of directing a motion-picture show likeMeg 2 : The Trench . He had mastered distressing and often pathological movies with a lot of dark humor , and here he went all out with giant shark and krakens battling Jason Statham , who was there to stab them in the mouth . However , when asked about his choice , he dismissed what he knew was go to be critical charge and explain whatMeg 2was about ( viaThe Nerds of Color ):
" I think of , what we were after , what we did reach towards was like pure amusement as much as we couldyou know . It was all particularly designed to be like that , to be fun . And we had fun making it so hopefully that shows … I consider you fundamentally have to get it on those variety of movies to start with . I grew up keep an eye on clobber likeThem , the jumbo ant picture , and theGodzillamovies , likeGojira , and watching Ray Harryhausen movies . So I love that stuff . "
As for Page Kennedy , who went from comic fill-in to a more important part of the hurl forMeg 2 : The Trench , he had a sight of great thing to say about the moving picture . " I go to do cool randomness – tonne this time ! Before , I was more on the run , and this clip , my character is a piddling different , he ’s more prepared . Because of that preparation , we get to see him in a different brightness level than we did before , and that ’s exciting . "
Audiences Made Meg 2 A Success
Meg 2 Made Its Budget Back In Its Opening Weekend
It was a huge surprise when the firstMegmovie made $ 527.2 million at the box office , with $ 381 million internationally . That madeMeg 2 : The Trenchalmost a give as a sequel , and most look it to be a outrageous drop - off , as most sequel are . While it was a cliff - off , it was nowhere near as bad as most might have expected . Hitting theaters in 2023,it still made $ 397.8 million(although only $ 82 million came domestically ) . It seems that fans worldwide did n’t deal what critic had to say about the film .
million 2 : The Trench has overcome short reexamination to become a healthy boxful role succeeder , and there many factor involved in its worldwide success .
Meg 2didn’t block there . Not only did vital reviews not bear upon the movie ’s box office at all , but it ended up as a with child hit when it degenerate on cyclosis in 2024 . Over a twelvemonth after its press release , it ended up climb up the chart andMeg 2was even sit in the top 10 on Prime Videoin December 2024 . It also streams on Max , and continues to find young fan as people light upon the fun monster movie .
What Is The Future Of Meg Franchise?
Ben Wheatley Wants To MakeMeg 3
WhenMeg 2 : The Trenchcame out , theater director Ben Wheatley said that he had big idea for a third movie and would get laid to direct it . With the two movies in the franchise totaling $ 925.1 million on a $ 307 million production budget ( viaThe Numbers ) , it seems likely that the studio might want to keep making more flick in the franchise . As for Wheatley , here is what he had to say about coming back forMeg 3(viaTotal Film ):
" I hope so . There ’s a lot more to explore in that man . It ’s very rich . The external - cape of it is very interesting … What ’s so smart about the first film is that it ’s not Rush Hour . It ’s not East - meet - West , ' Oh , we ’re all bewildered about each other … It ’s just people work together , and being in an everyday adventure , and the masses just happen to come from places all over the domain . I think that ’s beneficial for audiences , and it ’s a dependable message as well . "
What the story could be is anyone ’s guess . The dinosaurs shown could present a Jason Statham vs. dinosaur movie if the fall megalodons are catch a little too repetitive . There is also some more informant material , as source Steve Altman has more books , andMeg 2was actually free-base on his 1999 novel , The Trench . The third book even has Jonas as a married man with a teenage girl 18 years later , when more Megs return . However , there are no updates on the studio ’s plans for a third film .
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