Jason Statham belongs to a class of near-extinct performers that, in many ways, create a clear distinction between the word “actor” and “performer.” Like the Schwarzeneggers and Stallones of decades past, it’s never the acting you anticipate from Statham, but his macho persona dealing with a new set of problems. 504o5c

In The Meg, that problem is a megalodon — a shark that happens to be bigger than, ostensibly, most of our futures. It first dropped into cinemas in August 2018, and its shiny $529.2 million box office haul was more than enough for Warner Bros. to greenlight Meg 2: The Trench five years later. More importantly, however, it proved that audiences were as hungry as ever for good old-fashioned creature features, as the denizens of Prime Video have continued to prove today.

Per FlixPatrol, The Meg is currently swimming in seventh place on the Prime Video film charts in the United States at the time of writing. Failing to jump this particular shark is a ninth-place Jurassic World — a less desirable monster movie considering its more prestigious roots — and a 10th-place Legally Blonde, also a monster movie by way of those beastly tuition prices for higher education.

The Meg stars Statham as Jonas Taylor, a rescue diver haunted by memories of the people he failed to save on past expeditions. He’s recruited by a group of scientists to rescue a research/exploration crew — who his ex-wife happens to be a part of — when they become trapped in a trench containing yet-undiscovered sea life, and let’s just say Jonas and the rescuees aren’t the only things that emerge from the trench.

A co-production between the United States and China, The Meg is a very strange movie. It’s neither formulaic nor particularly coherent. Its personality is distinct, yet it remains inconsequential. Refreshingly unpretentious, yet creatively lazy. Not quite nothing, but not really anything, either.

Indeed, the plot beats all bleed into one another as Statham and the gang peddle along in their impromptu war against Mother Nature’s secret fighter — the inciting incident, climax, and everything in between instead read as one, long, connected incident. The scientist Zhang muses philosophically on humanity’s destructive relationship with nature, and then Rainn Wilson (as billionaire Morris) scoffs and rolls his eyes because this movie has no interest in anything truly intelligent. That’s not a knock at The Meg — it doesn’t meet that intelligence with cynical/obnoxious stupidity, but rather politely turns it away at the door before doing another cinematic keg stand in the form of a shark-stabbing Jason Statham.

One genuinely interesting aspect about this particular Statham action hero is the sweetness with which he interacts with children (the child, being the eight-year-old Meiying, played by Sophia Cai). It’s not much, but in place of the straight-yet-satirical genius that make up the actor’s best escapades (The Beekeeper being the prime example there), it makes for a surprisingly fresh revelation on Statham’s rangeless reputation.

From reported documents to the discovery of super-sized fossils, we certainly have all the proof in the world that dinosaurs did exist at one point in time. But the major question circulating on TikTok right now is — are some dinosaurs still alive?

The theory in itself might appear far-fetched and delusional to some, but a video shared to the media platform by @asphalt_angel definitely helps to make a compelling theory about the possibility of dinosaurs still being here on Earth. In the short but thought-provoking video, the OP’s teenage daughter unveils a head-turning conspiracy about how the infamous Megalodon — or as she calls it, “Megladongalong” — is potentially still out there in the ocean.

To make matters more interesting, the teen offered up a statistic about the ocean, stating that 95% of the entire ocean has yet to be properly explored and discovered. Thus, the teen has made an educated guess that the Megalodon is still alive, and any explorers who have used boats and submarines to try and find the beastly species have been eaten by the creature.

As to be expected, commenters on the video were notably hesitant about the theory, although many TikTokers are in agreement with the teen simply because her Georgia accent makes her explanation that much better.

Despite the conspiracy theory sounding a tad delusional, the truth of the matter is that a large majority of the ocean truly has gone unexplored, as stated by the National Geographic Society. Does that mean the Megalodon and other oceanic dinosaurs are real? Well, we don’t know that for sure, but we know that we definitely won’t be firing up a submarine any time soon to find out. Unless we have Jason Statham with us, of course.

In the modern-day age of Hollywood, there’s undoubtedly a particular feeling that rears its ugly head in regard to the oversaturation of a certain type of movie. Of course, the creature feature sub-genre is certainly one of the biggest culprits, with a large portion of creature horrors deemed as “too much” in the Hollywood bubble. And if it wasn’t already bad enough, Meg 2: The Trench is now living proof that sometimes it really is just beating a dead horse.

That’s certainly not to say that the pulse-pounding sequel isn’t enjoying a fair amount of success, because it definitely is. In fact, it would be hard to disagree with the notion that the creature feature sequel is absolutely the hottest movie on the planet right now — and there’s no denying that it’s proving to be the hottest horror hit of the summer at the box office as well.

But while the movie continues to soar alongside ever-popular flicks such as Barbie and Oppenheimer at the box office, it’s hard to ignore the simple fact that the horror feature is being ripped apart by critics as far as the eye can see. Taking a step back to that the movie harbored a score of 0% on Rotten Tomatoes just a few short days ago, it’s not at all surprising when you sit down and realize that there are 9 other movies just like it.

Breaking it down, there are a variety of creature feature horrors that include a strongly similar premise of a prehistoric megalodon shark attacking a group of helpless victims. That’s not to say that each of these movies is exactly like Meg 2, but there’s also no denying that wearing out the same concept over and over becomes stale pretty quickly — at least in the eyes of critics.

The days are long, the sun is warm, and summer is officially upon us. With ample time to rewatch your favorite movies or to binge your most beloved romantic or shark-infested films — there’s no time like the present to focus on all things pop culture. Streaming platforms recognize this same idea, which means the additions to your favorite services in July are always top-notch.

Max is adding a slew of films and TV watch options for you to enjoy this month, and with Shark Week on the horizon, summer romance on the brain, and Barbienheimer (yes, Barbie and Oppenheimer are debuting on the same day and fans can’t get enough) just weeks away; Max knew just what to bring to the table. From The Meg to a Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge, there’s so much to enjoy in the next few weeks.

Of course, some of the titles being added are existing favorites for entertainment fans, while others will strike gold as they grab the attention of audiences everywhere for the first time as they make us laugh, cry, and believe in magic all over again. So which movies and TV shows will you soon be able to stream, and which are already available? Let’s take a look.

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Christopher Nolan’s Dunkirk was one of the most highly-anticipated movies of 2017 for many reasons. It was the acting debut of Harry Styles, starred a powerful cast, and would go on to become the highest-grossing WWII film of all time. Needless to say, Dunkirk is a film that you simply can’t miss, and one that war movie lovers have already added to their frequently rewatched list.

While there was nothing like seeing Dunkirk in theaters, it’s still a great watch to enjoy in the comforts of your home, too, hopefully with a stellar sound system and some of your favorite snacks.

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With Discovery’s Shark Week kicking off from July 11-18, fans will undeniably be watching anything they can sink their teeth into (some pun intended) in the realm of sea creatures. The Meg is the perfect watch this month, even if it does make some viewers feel a little uneasy about their trips to the beach.

The Meg stars Jason Statham, Ruby Rose, Li Bingbing, Jessica McNamee, and Rainn Wilson — to name a few, and the premise for those who haven’t seen it yet reads as follows:

“Previously thought to be extinct, a massive creature attacks a deep-sea submersible, leaving it disabled and trapping the crew at the bottom of the Pacific. With time running out, a visionary oceanographer recruits rescue diver Jonas Taylor to save the crew and the sea itself from an unimaginable threat — a 75-foot-long prehistoric shark known as the Megalodon.”

While rumors swirling around the internet say that the Megalodon still exists, don’t fret; scientists say that the larger-than-life creatures did exist at one time, but that was millions of years ago. So you can rest easy as you watch The Meg this summer, knowing the only sharks you’re sure to see at the beaches you visit are much smaller in comparison.

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We know we said we were recommending summer watches, but hear us out — Thirteen Ghosts doesn’t just have to be a film you watch during spooky season. In fact, if you find yourself in the mood to indulge in something unnerving, this movie is a perfect one to enjoy.

There’s another reason right now is a great time to dive back into Thirteen Ghosts, and that’s its biggest star: Matthew Lillard. Lillard knows how to do frightening films perfectly, and we’ll soon see that again as he takes on an important role in the video-game-inspired movie, Five Nights at Freddy’s.

Lillard has a powerful presence in any film he plays in, but there’s something special bout this one, and if you’ve yet to see Thirteen Ghosts, the synopsis reads as follows:

“A state-of-the-art remake of the classic William Castle horror film about a family that inherits a spectacular old house from an eccentric uncle. There’s just one problem: the house seems to have a dangerous agenda all its own. Trapped in their new home by strangely shifting walls, the family encounters powerful and vengeful entities that threaten to annihilate anyone in their path.”

Oh, and if we’re being honest, once the Fourth of July is over, it’s all spooky season around here for us, so why not kick it off, right?

Last Call: When A Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York z1y58

For true crime fans, there are quite a few series coming to Max in July that you won’t want to miss, one of which is Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York. The four-part docies tells the painful true story of a city that had to fight for its own when officials ignored their pleas to take down a potential serial killer that preyed upon gay men in New York.

The docies is based on the book of the same name, written by Elon Green. The “Last Call Killer” was publicly named as a suspect in 2001, though the crimes occurred in the early 1990s. Richard Rogers was eventually brought to trial, but many believe that his crimes were far more severe than what he was charged with, and while “justice was served” years after the killings, many aren’t convinced that justice is a term that should even be used where these crimes are concerned.

It’s not just that innocent men were killed, it’s that the queer community was left without protection and treated without comion as their lives were mercilessly taken, and no arrest or judgment could undo what had already been done.

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The Barbie Dreamhouse Challenge is premiering on HGTV, but those without cable can keep up with the series on Max. With just under three weeks until the highly anticipated Barbie movie is slated to hit theaters, fans can’t get all things pink, plastic, and fantastic off their minds.

HGTV notes that model and influencer Ashley Graham is set to host the reality competition, which hosts eight teams who all set out to help create the perfect Barbie Dreamhouse. Graham is as excited to be part of the series as fans are to watch it:

“To pull this off, we’ve assembled the biggest group of renovation stars ever on HGTV to create a real-life fully functioning Barbie Dreamhouse. The pressure is on for the teams to unleash their creativity far beyond their usual design parameters to dream up a place that Barbie would be proud to call home.”

Making Barbie proud is the name of the game and, honestly, a mantra we’re planning to bring into our own lives as often as possible.

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Another exciting addition to Max will be an original called The Golden Boy. The docies will stand out amid several high-profile releases for many reasons; one is that it’s told, in large, in the words of the man the story is being spoken about.

Oscar De La Hoya was royalty in the boxing realm from the time he was a teenager on, but that same crown he wore weighed heavily upon him.

HBO shares the following information about The Golden Boy, and we’re preparing to have pretty intense feelings about this one:

“Told in De La Hoya’s own words through a series of candid interviews with him and those closest to him, and featuring rare archival footage, The Golden Boy peels back the layers of this celebrated yet complicated figure, exploring his triumphs and turmoil to reveal a man struggling to come to with lifelong demons and the impossible burden of a nickname he couldn’t live up to.”

“The impossible burden of a nickname he couldn’t live up to.” If that doesn’t say it all, nothing will. De La Hoya was incredible for who he was when he entered the ring and the realm of entertainment and celebrity, but the stigma that you must do more and be more isn’t lost on anyone who has been an idol or anyone who has one. The world wants more of you when you’re a performer, and suddenly your best stops feeling like it’s good enough at all.

In addition to the exciting additions above, TV and film buffs will also see the following titles added to Max:

Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Goodwill Hunting, Cujo, King Kong, Because of Winn-Dixie, 17 Again, Body in the Basement, Outdaughtered, After the Bite, Gotham Knights, Mother May I Murder?, and Flip the Strip, Season 1 will also the service. Decider shared a complete list of what you can find on Max this month, and as we said before, there’s a lot of good headed your way. So grab your popcorn and snacks of choice and get ready for some movie and tv binges!

2018’s The Meg was the epitome of dumb fun. The ludicrous story saw Jason Statham squaring off against a gigantic prehistoric shark. The Megalodon proved to be a very fun cinematic beastie, and though Statham’s character killed off the first film’s monster by ramming it with a submersible and stabbing it in the eye – causing it to be devoured by modern sharks – it ended with a tease that more Megalodons are out there. And they’re hungry!

Now, Statham is officially getting back in the water in Meg 2: The Trench, which in an interesting twist is being directed by garlanded British arthouse director Ben Wheatley. The first trailer has just debuted at CinemaCon and, while it’s not online, reactions from those present tease an even crazier giant shark romp:

Okay, we’re sold. Honestly, if Warner Bros. wants to save some money on marketing it should just put this tweet on billboards and call it a day. Arguably, there’s a chance that tossing dinosaurs into your giant shark caper is… well, jumping the shark, but if you’re going to get incredibly dumb, this is definitely the franchise to do it in.

We’re going to assume that the dinosaur-eating scene is set in prehistoric times rather than the modern day, as the conceit of the franchise is that these creatures have been trapped deep underwater for millions of years. That said, if they can figure out a way to pit Jason Statham against both giant sharks and dinosaurs, then that sounds like box office gold.

Meg 2 wrapped up its shoot last year, and post-production has been underway ever since. News has been scarce, but expect to see that trailer arrive online very soon, as Meg 2: The Trench will land in just a few months on Aug 4.

A creature feature with a budget estimated to be pushing $180 million isn’t going to be an awards season contender, but that doesn’t mean there was any justifiable reason for The Meg to be a disappointment.

Sure, the PG-13 rating didn’t do it any favors when it came to making the most of its ridiculous concept, but let’s not forget that modern horror classics A Quiet Place and Drag Me to Hell were awarded the same rating by the MPAA. Not quite scary enough but nowhere near cheesy enough, either, the giant shark thriller failed to make use of the tools that were within its disposal.

That being said, it was a suitably monster-sized hit at the box office after earning $530 million globally, with sequel The Trench due to hit theaters next summer. That doesn’t mean we can’t feel a tinge of regret over a project sold entirely on the basis of “Jason Statham vs. Prehistoric Shark” landing a frustratingly mediocre Rotten Tomatoes score of just 46 percent.

The Meg still delivers enough big, dumb, loud, and exceedingly stupid fun if you’ve got a couple of hours to kill, though, something Netflix subscribers have been discovering for themselves. Per FlixPatrol, the B-tier movie with an A-list budget has smelled blood in the water to chomp on the platform’s global charts, and it’s even making a splash on Prime Video and Google Play Movies in certain markets, too.

Not quite the sum of its parts, then, but having Ben Wheatley directing the second installment should guarantee a sophomore adventure.

Jason Statham’s The Meg is about an epic aquatic predator, and now Meg 2: The Trench is upping the casting scope of its giant shark story by including Wu Jing, the highest-grossing male actor of all time in China’s film market.

On Friday, Variety first reported news of the former martial artist and director ing the project. Wu, who began his rise to the top in Hong Kong cinema in 1996, had a minor role in The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor behind Brendan Fraser and Jet Li, kicked off the Wolf Warrior series, whose second outing grossed more than $800 million. He has featured in seven movies since 2017 which have earned more than $100 million each. These include The Wandering Earth, which he invested some of his own money to help finish, and the propaganda anthology My Country, My Parents.

The first movie in this series also included a number of Asian entertainers and had sequences near its end set in China. Li Bingbing played a female oceanographer as a counterpoint to Statham’s gruff lead but is not expected to return to the series as of this story being filed. Others in the Meg 2: The Trench cast at this time include Scream Queens veteran Skyler Samuels, the original Resident Evil’s Sienna Guillory, and Snowfall’s Sergio Peris-Mecheta.

Meg 2: The Trench began filming this month. It does not yet have a release date to let audiences know when they should be wary of going back into the open water. Until then, the next projects for Wu and Statham are Wandering Earth II, preparation on a Wolf Warrior III, The Expendables 4, and Guy Ritchie’s Operation Fortune, respectively.

History has shown that the four titans of mid budget action cinema can always be relied on to see virtually every movie from their extensive back catalogues find a place on the most-watched list of any streaming service they appear on.

We are of course referring to Denzel Washington, Liam Neeson, Jason Statham and Gerard Butler, the quartet of veteran ass-kickers that have carved out a very respectable niche for themselves as the leading men of blood-splattered and bullet-riddled genre films that rarely stray above the $60 million budgetary line.

However, despite his continued association with the sprawling and very expensive Fast & Furious saga, Statham branched out for the first time in a long time by taking top billing in a $150 million blockbuster where he battled a gigantic shark. The Meg turned out to be the highest-grossing outing of his career where he took top billing after it swam to a healthy box office total of $530 million, so it’s no surprise a sequel is in the works.

Ben Wheatley’s second installment is poised to start shooting next year, but Netflix subscribers have clearly been getting reacquainted with Statham’s Jonas Taylor, after The Meg began rising from the depths of the platform’s most-watched list, as per FlixPatrol.

Giant shark blockbuster The Meg delivered exactly what it promised by gifting audiences with a big budget creature feature that revolved around Jason Statham and a ing cast comprised almost entirely of cannon fodder doing their best to take down a prehistoric killing machine. It was far from spectacular, but it was perfectly functional crowd-pleasing entertainment nonetheless. It also hauled in over $530 million at the box office, $150 million of which came from China, so a sequel was always going to happen. The first installment was directed by the reliably workmanlike if hardly spectacular Jon Turteltaub with very little in the way of visual flair, but that’s more than likely set to change after Ben Wheatley was chosen straight out of left field to helm the in-development sequel. The Meg‘s $178 million budget is considerably higher than the total combined production costs of the filmmaker’s entire back catalogue, which is what makes the prospect of the man behind the likes of Kill List, High-Rise, Free Fire and more making the jump to calling the shots on an effects-driven studio epic all the more exciting.

“A lot of it is respecting The Meg, and trying to make sure it’s a great Meg film. And as you can see from the movies I’ve made, they’re not necessarily, it’s not… When you go and do Doctor Who, I don’t completely change it because I wanted to do it. I didn’t want to necessarily make it something completely different that nobody recognized, you know? So there’s that element of back and forth. But it’s an opportunity to do action on such an insanely large scale, that it’s just unbelievable. From doing Free Fire, which was, I thought, was all my Christmases came at once in of action, this is just unbelievable. And just doing the storyboards for it, just thinking and going, ‘Oh,’ it’s just, I feel a heavy responsibility for it, to make sure that it kind of delivers on all the, to all the big shark fans out there.”

The 48 year-old has nine features under his belt, all of which occupy a distinctly different space genre-wise, so there’s literally no way of guessing how Wheatley plans to approach The Meg 2. The premise leans into his sensibilities when it comes to both horror and thrillers, but Free Fire showed he was no slouch in the action department, either. Throw that together with a concept predicated on a massive shark with an appetite, and you’ve got the makings of a hugely exciting movie.

Jason Statham has been a regular fixture on our screens for over two decades now, but in the last few years, he’s enjoyed the most box office success of his career, largely due to his involvement in the Expendables and Fast and Furious franchises. Before that, the 53 year-old reigned for a long time as the king of the B-level action movie, churning out a series of formulaic genre flicks that were never anything less than watchable. But his career has really reached a whole new level as of late. While a scene-stealing ing role in Paul Feig’s Spy revealed a superb comic talent hidden underneath the rough exterior, Statham has tended to rely on his unique blend of gruff charisma to sell his personal brand, and it’s worked wonders for him. As a former competitive diver that represented his country at the 1990 Commonwealth Games, the Snatch star is obviously no stranger to the water, either, and that experience came in pretty handy when he headlined 2018 blockbuster The Meg.

The Meg may have received a mixed response from the critics, but it seems that the simplicity of its central premise (that is, big shark tries to eat people) struck a cord with a lot of filmgoers, as the feature fared pretty respectively at the box office. In fact, with a worldwide gross of $527.8 million, the monster movie is the most successful US-Chinese co-production to date, making it only natural that The Meg 2 is in the works. Executive producer Catherine Xujun Ying confirmed as such at the U.S.-China Entertainment Summit in Los Angeles, telling Variety that the follow-up is “still in the very early stages, but we’re working on it. We’re trying to keep it secret at this time.” While the project has yet to get the green light from Warner Bros., this is still encouraging news for anyone who could get on board with the silly thrills of Jon Turteltaub’s picture. At this point, however, we wouldn’t count on the same director making a return to the property, with the National Treasure helmsman saying earlier this year that he was “so disappointed the film wasn’t more bloody or disgusting.”

Listen, no film is ever guaranteed to be a success, but Jason Statham vs. a gigantic prehistoric shark seemed like a pretty hard concept to screw up. Of course, we’re talking about The Meg, Jon Turteltaub’s deep-sea thriller which resurrected a long-dormant monster in the megalodon. Standing in its way, of course, was Statham’s gruff diver Jonas Taylor, who found himself on a collision course with the 95-foot-long prehistoric shark. And yet, despite its wildly exciting premise, the film ultimately lacked a sharp bite. Meaning, that instead of going for the R-rating and giving us the expected blood and gore, it played things safe, sticking to PG-13 violence and keeping it light on the carnage front. It was a frustrating watch, too, as every time you thought the movie was “going there,” Turteltaub (National Treasure) pulled back significantly. Still, we remained hopeful that the home video release would bring about some of that juicy deleted content we’ve heard so much about, but it seems that won’t be the case, sadly.

• Chomp On This: The Making of The Meg
• Creating the Beast

Given that we know there’s an R-rated cut of the film out there somewhere, as Turteltaub told us as much prior to release, it’s pretty frustrating to learn that we won’t be able to see it. As it stands, The Meg isn’t an unenjoyable movie – far from it, in fact – but it never comes close to escaping the shadow of Jaws and also falls short of other contenders like Deep Blue Sea and The Shallows. Could a Restricted version have improved it that significantly? Maybe not, but it sure would’ve given the pic a little more bite and no doubt people would be more inclined to check it out on Blu-ray if they knew it came with a bloodier, gorier and more edgy cut.