The killer shark genre has seen something of a resurgence lately, and thankfully not the cheesy gimmicky kind. Nope, we’ve been getting serious attempts at aquatic horror lately thanks to The Shallows and 47 Meters Down. And now, it’s resulted in the long-awaited sequel to Deep Blue Sea being pushed into production.
The Darrin Scott-directed film, which was shot in Cape Town, South Africa over the summer, has recently been rated R for “creature violence and gore” as well having some “ strong language.” At least they’re not worried about being too graphic. After all, it’s far too easy to make a PG-13 shark movie these days, so I respect the producers’ decision to go all the way with this new effort.
“We are a true sequel. We wanted to keep to the spirit of Deep Blue Sea and why people love it,” Matt Bierman, creative executive for Warner Bros, recently said.
“The research that was used on the sharks in Deep Blue Sea 2 comes from the mythology and story line of the first movie. We have given the lead shark an intelligence and personality and hope the fans will embrace that as it really helps the story telling and the narrative in a way that first one didn’t. Deep Blue Sea 2 has a slightly slower build but once the rubber band snaps things go boom really quickly!”
Sharks with intelligence and personality, you say? Count me in. The killer shark genre is one that’s been suffering for decades, ever since the Jaws franchise fell into a ridiculous state of almost being parodies. But with more serious shark films coming back into the mainstream, it might be a rather hopeful time for fans. Granted, it’d be nice to get some more Lovecraft-styled aquatic horror movies, but until then, these crafty bull sharks will have to do.
Deep Blue Sea 2 will premiere on Syfy in 2018.
