’47 Meters Down’ Director Compares Sequel to ‘The Descent’

Helping confirm that horror fans can never get enough movies about killer sharks, last year’s 47 Meters Down became one of the summer’s surprise horror hits. A sequel, 48 Meters Down, was announced with director Johannes Roberts once again helming the film. The filmmaker recently shared that the sequel will be heavily influenced by 2005’s The Descent.

“If I had to pitch it in a very simple way, I would describe it as The Descent underwater,” Roberts shared with Bloody Disgusting. “So it will be six or seven people trapped in the caves in Brazil, an underwater city.”

The official synopsis of the sequel is as follows:

“48 Meters Down takes place in Brazil with five young women from different backgrounds and countries united by their lust for life and adventure in the coastal metropolis of Recife. In an attempt to get off the tourist trail, they decide to explore a hidden underwater ruin but the caves where the forgotten city lies are inhabited by the deadliest shark species in the ocean.”

In The Descent, a group of friends goes spelunking in an unexplored system of caves. After a cave collapse poses a threat to their safety, the friends learn that this will be the least of their worries, as a group of creatures begins to stalk the travelers.

“It’ll all be cave diving which is the most terrifying thing I’ve ever done,” Roberts noted. “I trained to do cave diving while I was shooting 47 in the Dominican Republic. It’s beyond terrifying so it just seemed like a really great idea to make that the sequel.”

In 2016, the Blake Lively-starring The Shallows hit theaters, which depicted a surfer who got stranded on a rock near the shore with a deadly shark lurking the waters nearby, forcing her to confront her fears if she hopes to make her way to safety. Audiences instantly noticed similarities between that film and 47 Meters Down, which depicted two friends trapped in a shark-diving cage in waters infested with the massive fish, yet 47 Meters Down had begun production before The Shallows became a success. In fact, The Shallows‘ success allowed Roberts to spend more time crafting his story, with that film having proven that audiences were interested a similar story.

48 Meters Down is slated to hit theaters on June 28, 2019.

Are you looking forward to seeing a sequel to the film? Let us know in the comments below!

[H/T Bloody Disgusting]