Jason Statham-starrer 'The Meg' sequel commences filming

The next installment of Hollywood actor Jason Statham's shark thriller 'The Meg' has commenced filming in the UK.

According to Variety, the production on the sequel, 'Meg 2: The Trench', has started with a splash at Warner Bros. owned Leavesden Studios outside London, where the 'Harry Potter' and 'Batman' franchises were also made.

The upcoming film, directed by Ben Wheatley, will be about a murderous 80-foot prehistoric shark. Wheatley has taken the reins over from Jon Turteltaub, who directed the first instalment of the franchise, which took USD 530 million worldwide.

In the sequel, Statham and Bingbing Li are expected to reprise their roles. The former was US Navy rescue diver Jonas and Li was oceanographer Suyin.

During his early years, Statham has been a world-class diver, competing as a member of Britain's National Diving Squad and even represented the country at the 1990 Commonwealth Games.

Other returning members for the upcoming film include screenwriters Dean Georgaris, Erich Hoeber and Jon Hoeber along with producers Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Belle Avery and executive producer Catherine Xujun Ying.

As per Variety, 'The Meg', in which Statham battled a monstrous prehistoric shark after it emerged from the world's deepest ocean trench, was based on Steve Alten's 1997 book 'Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror'.

( With inputs from ANI )