Warning: Major spoilers for The Meg 2: The Trench below!
Summary
- Meg 2: The Trench's ending features Jonas and his crew protecting tourists from escaped Megalodons, while also dealing with mercenaries and a villain's plot.
- Jonas kills two Megalodons but Haiqi, a female Meg, manages to escape.
- The movie hints at Haiqi being pregnant, suggesting that more Megalodons will pose a threat in the future, along with the possibility of other aquatic creatures.
Meg 2: The Trench's ending once again proves that Megalodons are no match for the apex predator known as Jason Statham. Meg 2 picks up a few years on from the original The Meg's ending, where Jonas and his Mana One team go on another expedition into the Mariana Trench, only to run into trouble from three Megs and discovering an illegal mining base on the bottom. After becoming stranded and managing to escape using one of the base's submersibles, they find that an explosion has ripped a hole in the Thermocline layer of the Trench, allowing the Megs - and other creatures - to escape.
Meg 2's ending sees the crew in a race against time to protect tourists on nearby Fun Island, in addition to killing the escaped Trench monsters. They also have to dodge mercenaries hired by The Trench's villain Driscoli (Sienna Guillory), who wants to silence them after they found her base. Needless to say, the escaped monsters eat most of the villains, while Statham and his crew take care of the beasts themselves - bar one. They then celebrate their victory with drinks on the beach, knowing they'll likely have to deal with more Megs in the near future.
Why Jonas Kills Two Megs But The Third Meg Lives
When Meg 2: The Trench opens, it's revealed that years before, the Mana One team found a baby Megalodon they call Haiqi and raised her in captivity. In fact, it's Haiqi's escape that forces Jonas and his crew into the Trench, kicking the story into motion. Below they discover two other giant sharks, including one Jonas dubs the "biggest" Megalodon anyone has ever seen. This trio of Megs causes no end of problems and eat a fair amount of tourists at Fun Island before Jonas can stop the buffet.
To distract the Megalodons from their food, Jonas hops on a jet ski and lures them away from the island. He also rigged some harpoons with explosives and kills one of the Megs by stabbing it in the head, which promptly explodes. The biggest shark is more of a hassle for poor Jonas, but in Meg 2's ending, he uses a helicopter blade and splashes it in the water to attract its attention, before using the blade to stab the charging monster in the brain.
Meg 2: The Trench cast franchise newcomer Wu Jing as Jiuming - the uncle of Meiying (Sophia Cai) - who had been training Haiqi not to attack using a special clicker. After Jonas has slain the other two Megalodons, Haiqi returns to attack. She launches straight at Jiuming, but while it looks like the clicker isn't going to work, the signal gets through to her and she turns away at the last second. Haiqi then swims away to parts unknown.
Meg 2’s Villain Plot & Mole Plan Explained: What They Wanted
Meg 2 adds a villain plot to spice things up, with Mana One investor Driscoli using the team's research as cover for her true goals. She established a base at the bottom of the Trench so she can mine a rare mineral that can only be found there and is worth billions. This operation is overseen by Montes (Sergio Peris-Mencheta), a merc with a personal grudge against Jonas for getting him thrown in prison on a previous operation. The Mana One crew uncovering this secret mining operation wasn't part of Driscoli's plan, so she orders Montes and her mole within the group to silence them.
Meg 2 mole is eventually revealed to be Jess (Skyler Samuels), who sabotaged the rescue sub. Jess is also romantically involved with Montes, and the only motive she gives Jonas for her betrayal being the money involved. Karma works overtime in Jess' case, as when the Megs escaped the Trench, she gets a little too close to a "Meg Proof" window - which is quickly broken when a Megalodon smashes through and eats her. For those who watched Meg 2's trailer this "smashing" death was spoiled already, however.
Did Any Other Creatures Escape From The Trench?
In addition to the three Megalodons that follow Jonas and the others through the broken Thermocline layer, some other beasties escape from the bottom too. The first is a giant squid, which also makes its way to Fun Island and starts snacking on tourists. While Jonas is busy with the Megalodons, it's up to Jiuming to take care of the squid, though in this case, he's given some assistance by a hungry Meg.
Some man-eating amphibian lizards also come to shore on Fun Island, and they prove surprisingly useful in decimating the mercenaries hunting Jonas and co. They also grab Meg 2 villain Driscoli as she tries to escape via helicopter. A combination of explosives and gunfire takes care of these nasty lizards.
Meg 2 Teases Haiqi Is Pregnant - Setting Up Meg 3’s Story
Jiuming eventually reasons that Haiqi escaped captivity and was so eager to return to the Trench because it was mating season, and the crew is then given a front row seat to Haiqi getting very friendly with the other Megs. In the final scene, Jonas and Jiuming discuss the possibility Haiqi is pregnant, and they may soon have more Megs to deal with. They decide that's a headache for another day, and just decide to celebrate their victory and get drunk.
While Meg 2 doesn't confirm it, Haiqi is likely pregnant, and the world will soon have to deal with more Megalodons swimming around. Not only that, it's probable that other creatures have escaped from the Trench, with later books in author Steve Alten's Meg series featuring aquatic creatures like the Liopleurodon or the Kronosaurus. With the layer separating the world from the Trench now ripped open, The Meg 3 will have plenty of other threats for Jonas to deal with.
How Meg 2’s Ending Differs From The Trench Book
While Alten's novel The Trench bares superficial similarities to Meg 2 movie, their stories play out quite differently. The most obvious story beat they share is a Meg escaping captivity so it can mate, but outside of featuring Statham's Jonas or Cliff Curtis' Mac, other major book characters like Jonas' wife Terry or energy mogul villain Benedict Singer are absent. There's also a key book subplot involving a Kronosaurus attacking submarines that is missing from the movie sequel.
The Trench novel's ending takes place in the Trench itself, where Jonas rescues his wife from an underwater lab. They manage to escape the lab before it's destroyed, but Jonas fears his recurring nightmare of dying in the Trench is about to come true, as a Kronosaurus nearly destroys their escape pod. In an unexpected twist, Angel the Meg - the book's version of Haiqi - attacks and kills the monster instead, allowing the couple to escape. The book ends with Angel giving birth to two male offspring, setting up the third novel Primal Waters. Meg 2: The Trench's ending takes place entirely on Fun Island, and no Kronosaurus' appear.