STACK #169 Nov 2018

FILM FEATURE

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Following decades trapped in development hell, The Meg finally surfaced this year with Jason Statham and director JonTurteltaub onboard. Words Adam Colby

F ans of author Steve Alten’s 1997 novel Meg – in which a 20-metre prehistoric shark, the megalodon, is discovered lurking in the Marianas Trench off the coast of China – have been waiting a long time to see a screen adaptation. Originally intended to go into production in 1997, the film version, like its monstrous predator, found itself stuck in limbo for the next two decades, until Warner Bros. announced it would make the film in 2015, with director Eli Roth onboard. Roth would leave the project the following year, however, replaced

Nothing means more to me than

by Jon Turteltaub – best known for helming Cool Runnings and the National Treasure films. Jason Statham also signed on to play the lead role of deep-sea rescue specialist

Director JonTurteltaub on the set.

entertaining audiences, and I’ve never thought it more than on The Meg

suddenly unleashed and roaming the

sense of fun and adventure on the set, despite the challenges of shooting on the open ocean. “I’m bored if I’m not trying to be funny,” he admits. “I always try to keep a sense of humor, at least with the cast. I want to bring out their creativity and humor and let them know that the set is a place where they’re not being judged. If everyone’s having a good time, then they’re probably feeling looser and more creative. “That’s not always the case. There are actors who like things to be serious and miserable. But even when I’ve directed

oceans, nothing would be safe in the water – not whales, not sharks, not humans. And how much would our entire ecosystem be

Jonas Taylor (certainly an ideal foil for the oversized shark!), and The Meg was ready to be unleashed. Turteltaub was drawn to The Meg as an opportunity to venture into new territory as a filmmaker. “I had never done a big monster movie – certainly not a giant shark movie – so I thought, “Ok, this is going to be a challenge… so let’s do it,” he says. “We love the prehistoric world and the mysteries it holds,” he continues, “but what if we discovered that this ancient animal was alive today? If this gigantic beast was

thrown off balance?” He also saw the film as a piece of pure entertainment that would capture the imagination of a global audience. “Nothing means more to me than entertaining audiences, and I’ve never thought it more than on The Meg . My mantra on that was, “Is this fun? Is this a delight? Is this interesting?” The answer is of course all three, and Turteltaub was determined to maintain a

dramas, the set is light. Frankly, the camera is rolling for not much more than twenty or thirty minutes each day, and during the other

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