Netflix Developing Sequel to One of Its Most Popular Films

There have been many movies released by Netflix over the years, and in 2022 the streaming site added one of its most popular films to date. The Sea Beast is a swashbuckling adventure about monster hunters on the open ocean that became "Certified Fresh" on Rotten Tomatoes with a 94% critics score and 84% audience score. Back in August, ComicBook.com talked with the movie's director, Chris Williams, who teased the idea of a sequel. Well, it looks like the second installment is officially happening. Earlier today, The Hollywood Reporter revealed that a sequel to The Sea Beast was in the works with Williams set to return as director. 

The Sea Beast has become Netflix's most-viewed animated movie in history and had the second-longest stay on Netflix's Top 10 list for a movie released by the streaming site in 2022 after Ryan Reynolds' The Adam Project. In honor of the animated film's success, Williams has signed an overall deal with Netflix. Not only is he working on a sequel to The Sea Beast, but he's also made a deal to create an original fantasy in the same vein as The Princess Bride. While chatting with THR, Williams addressed having the biggest animated movie in Netflix's history.

"I feel very fortunate and very grateful and relieved, if you can believe it," Williams shared. "I was at Disney for 25 years and it was a very difficult decision to leave. I agonized over it a very long time. There are reasons to stay at Disney and there are reasons to leave. And the reasons to stay are also reasons to leave. They treated me very well, I was very comfortable, and the relationships I had there stretched decades. But I felt like I had to detach from that, partially to tell a story that sat outside the bounds of what you normally consider North American feature animation. You can get creative satisfaction by pushing on boundaries at big companies like Disney or DreamWorks by expanding what people associated a Disney film with tonally. Big Hero 6 wasn't what people expected from Disney, and that was very gratifying. But I reached a point where I didn't want to nudge the boundary, I wanted to leap over it."

Are you excited The Sea Beast is getting a sequel? Tell us in the comments!