Jason Statham is one of the biggest action stars of the modern era, and Meg 2: The Trench has proven that it is Statham’s real franchise future after the actor’s other 2023 box office disappointments. 2023 has been a rough year at the box office for blockbusters, with many movies that seemed like guaranteed hits flopping. Several of Jason Statham’s movies have been subject to this problem, with multiple Statham movies failing critically and commercially after being released. Meg 2: The Trench, however, managed to avoid this problem, showing that it may truly be the future of Statham’s career in massive movie franchises.
Meg 2: The Trench is the sequel to 2018’s The Meg, with both of the ridiculous shark movies being surprisingly well received at the box office. Both The Meg films have starred Jason Statham, and while they have worked, this has been surprising to many longtime fans of the actors. Jason Statham has been known for acting in grounded, serious action films, with a CGI-heavy blockbuster about fighting prehistoric sharks not being something that Statham would typically be associated with. However, Statham’s recent wave of success has been on the back of The Meg, proving an interesting point about the actor’s franchise future.
Why Li Bingbing Isn’t In The Meg 2
Meg 2: The Trench is almost here, but the shark-infested sequel won’t include Li Bingbing, who mysteriously dropped out of the cast.
Meg 2 Was Actually Jason Statham’s Most Successful Movie Of 2023
As it turns out, Meg 2: The Trench was actually Jason Statham’s most successful movie of 2023. Jason Statham appeared in four movies in 2023, and while each of them has their own fans, Meg 2: The Trench is the only one that was an actual box-office success. On a budget of around $139 million, Meg 2: The Trench managed to rake in $395 million, beating the profitability rule of thumb of doubling the budget to account for distribution and advertising costs. Meg 2: The Trench is one of the few blockbusters to turn a profit in 2023, with it being Statham’s biggest box office success by far.
Jason Statham’s other movies didn’t fare nearly as well as Meg 2: The Trench, with the films ranging from box office disappointments to flops. Jason Statham’s first movie of 2023 was Operation Fortune: Ruse de Guerre, with it making $49.1 million on a budget of $50 million. Statham followed this up with Fast X, which made $714.6 million on a $340 million budget, meaning that the film was just barely profitable. Statham’s final film of the year was The Expendables 4, which was a massive flop, making only $51.1 million on a budget of $100 million. These three failures solidify Meg 2: The Trench as Statham’s most profitable 2023 film.
Why The Meg Is A Perfect Franchise For Jason Statham
Meg 2: The Trench‘s box office success sets up the possibility that The Meg could be Jason Statham’s biggest franchise, which is a good thing. The Meg franchise is actually perfect for Jason Statham, with it being exactly what the actor needs in his career. The Meg is a highly profitable action franchise in which Jason Statham is the sole star, with him being plastered all over every trailer and poster. The Meg is big, dumb, and fun, meaning that a litany of sequels could be released without hurting the little prestige that The Meg franchise has.
10 Biggest Changes To The Book In Meg 2 The Trench
Meg 2: The Trench is based on Steve Alten’s sci-fi novel The Trench, but the blockbuster movie franchise makes some big changes to the book story.
Jason Statham is a key part of several other franchises, but he isn’t the star of any of his biggest ongoing series. Jason Statham is only one of many stars in the Fast & Furious franchise, with him not being nearly as prominent as Vin Diesel. Even in the spinoff Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, The Rock was the main character while Jason Statham played second fiddle to him. Statham is also part of The Expendables franchise, where again he is merely a part of the ensemble cast led by Sylvester Stallone. Statham is at home in The Meg, with it being his sole star vehicle.
Will Meg 3 Happen?
In order for The Meg to be Jason Statham’s biggest ongoing franchise, Meg 3 has to happen, with many fans wondering if it is coming. While Meg 3 isn’t confirmed yet, it seems like the film will happen, as the box office success of the previous two films means that a third movie is likely to continue this trend. Director Ben Wheatley has commented that there is still a lot to explore in the universe of The Meg, meaning that he is eager to continue the franchise. Meg 2: The Trench is still fairly new, but word on a third The Meg film could come in the near future.
The Meg 2: The Trench
The Meg 2: The Trench is a followup to the 2018 Jason Statham-starring film about a giant Megalodon shark. The sequel is based on The Trench novel from Steve Alten and sees the return of Jason Statham and Cliff Curtis’ characters from the first film. Ben Wheatley replaces Jon Turteltaub as the director for the sequel.
- Release Date
- August 4, 2023
- Director
- Ben Wheatley
- Cast
- Jason Statham , Cliff Curtis , Sienna Guillory , Jing Wu , Shuya Sophia Cai , Skyler Samuels , Melissanthi Mahut , Page Kennedy
- Rating
- PG-13
- Runtime
- 116 Minutes
- Genres
- Action , Adventure , Horror
- Studio(s)
- CMC Pictures , DF Pictures , Di Bonaventura Pictures , Apelles Entertainment
- Distributor(s)
- Warner Bros. Pictures
- prequel(s)
- The Meg
