Jason Statham’s $398M Jurassic Park Rival Is Quickly Climbing Netflix’s Global Streaming Charts

Jason Statham has long been one of Hollywood’s most recognizable action stars, and one of his biggest box office hits is now climbing Netflix’s global streaming charts.

For over two decades, Statham has been the face of everything from gritty action thrillers like The Transporter and Crank to major franchises such as The Expendables and Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw, cementing his reputation as one of Hollywood’s most dependable action stars. Among those hits is The Meg franchise, Warner Bros.’ series that became one of the few modern creature franchises frequently compared to Jurassic Park. The actor remains as busy as ever, with his upcoming thriller Mutiny recently releasing its official trailer ahead of its debut later this year.

Meg 2: The Trench currently sits at number eight on Netflix’s worldwide movie chart for July 13. The sequel also holds the number one movie spot in multiple countries, including Brazil, the Bahamas, and the Dominican Republic, while remaining among the service’s most-watched films across dozens of international markets. Despite earning just a 27% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes, the $398 million movie shows audiences are still diving back into its massive prehistoric shark action nearly three years after its theatrical release in 2023.

Meg 2 follows rescue diver Jonas Taylor (Statham), who once again battles Megalodons while discovering even deadlier creatures hidden deep beneath the ocean’s surface. Directed by Ben Wheatley, the sequel expanded on the original film’s premise with more action sequences and even more giant sea creatures.

The Meg, which grossed over $530 million worldwide, launched Warner Bros.’ own giant-shark franchise. While often viewed as the studio’s answer to the Jurassic Park universe, The Meg never matched the Jurassic Park franchise’s box office heights. Even so, the first two films combined to earn nearly $930 million worldwide.

Meg 2: The Trench’s streaming success also reflects a broader trend. Large-scale action movies and creature films tend to perform well on streaming. They’re built around spectacle rather than continuity. Giant creature movies in particular have remained consistently popular on streaming services, where audiences can jump straight into action without needing extensive franchise knowledge or a complicated mythology.

© Warner Bros. / courtesy Everett Collection

Jason Statham shows no signs of slowing down. The actor is set to return to theaters with the action thriller Mutiny, in which he stars as a former special forces operative Cole Reed, and is also expected to reprise his role as Adam Clay in The Beekeeper 2. With new projects on the horizon and earlier hits continuing to perform well on streaming, his action catalog only continues to attract audiences across multiple platforms.

With Meg 2: The Trench now ranking among Netflix’s biggest movies worldwide and reaching the number one spot in several countries, the film is proving that these giant-shark adventures still have viewers eager to watch. Its latest streaming evolution cements Statham’s status as one of Hollywood’s most dependable action stars, while showing there’s clearly still an audience eager to dive back into one of his biggest franchises.

The Meg 2: The Trench

Release Date

August 2, 2023

Runtime

116 minutes

Director

Ben Wheatley

Writers

Erich Hoeber, Jon Hoeber, Steve Alten, Dean Georgaris