47 METERS DOWN had one of the coolest cinematic success stories of the year. Very nearly released straight-to-video by Dimension in the summer of 2016, the film switched distributors and release strategies just one week before it was supposed to reach store shelves – a switch that came so close to release that some copies of the DVD had already been shipped out. Even though the movie ended up leaking online because of that, 47 METERS DOWN still ended up making over $44 million at the domestic box office when it finally reached theatres this past June.
47 METERS DOWN had a budget in the range of 5 to 6 million, so after that success it makes sense that The Fyzz Facility has announced that they will be producing and financing a sequel, to be called 48 METERS DOWN.
Director Johannes Roberts, who recently wrapped production on the long-awaited sequel to THE STRANGERS, will be back to direct this sequel, working from a screenplay he has written with 47 METERS DOWN co-writer Ernest Riera. It doesn't sound like it will be a follow-up where you'll be wondering why a 47 character would be putting themselves in danger of being attacked by sharks all over again – 48 METERS DOWN will have a new group of characters in a new location, shifting the shark action from Mexico to Brazil.
This time around, the story centers on
a group of girls looking for adventure in the coastal metropolis of Recife. Hoping to get off the well-worn tourist trail, they hear about some hidden underwater ruins only to find that the turquoise waves of their secret Atlantis aren’t completely uninhabited.
That works for me. Fyzz producer James Harris promises that 48 METERS DOWN "will take the claustrophobia of cave diving and the thrill of shark encounters and move everything to the next level."
Despite the box office numbers, I wasn't expecting 47 METERS DOWN to get a sequel at all. Now that one has been announced with the creative team intact, I'm already excited for it.