Seven years ago, director Alexandre Aja and producer Sam Raimi teamed to bring us the alligator thriller Crawl, a film that was so entertaining, Quentin Tarantino even named it his favorite film of 2019. Two years ago, it was announced that Paramount Pictures was moving ahead with a sequel, with Aja returning to helm for Crawl 2, which he would also be producing alongside Raimi and Craig Flores… But we never heard much more about the project after that. Thankfully, Raimi has given a hopeful update about the sequel while doing the press rounds for his new hit Send Help.
Crawl Refresher
Aja directed Crawl from a screenplay by Shawn and Michael Rasmussen, telling the following story: When a massive hurricane hits her Florida hometown, Haley ignores evacuation orders to search for her missing father. Finding him gravely injured in the crawl space of their family home, the two become trapped by quickly encroaching floodwaters. As time runs out to escape the strengthening storm, Haley and her father discover that the rising water level is the least of their fears. The film stars Kaya Scodelario and Barry Pepper.
When Will We Get Crawl 2?
When Crawl 2 was announced, Aja said, “I would say that I never really stopped working on Crawl… After we were done, I kept thinking about all the other great setups that we could create, and it was really an exciting movie to make. So I wanted to really be involved in doing a sequel, and after a few troubled years with Covid and everything, I feel like we are now in a position that, hopefully next year, it might happen. So I’m excited. I’m ready to go. I’ve been lining up so many scenes and stuff, so it’s there. We just have to do it now and get back in the water.“
At the time, it was rumored that Crawl 2 would revolve around a new cast in a new location, this time said to be New York City.
Raimi gave an update on the project during an interview with The Wrap, explaining that the delay was caused by a regime change at the studio. He said, “We’ve been trying to get a go from the studio, and they changed hands, Paramount Pictures did, and now the new group that’s come in I’ve worked with before, the ladies and gentlemen that are great at development, and they’re interested in Crawl 2. That’s all I could really say right now, is now I’ve got a new hope to make it. … It’s a little bit, I think, embarrassing to make an alligator in the basement picture. I don’t know if that’s what their lofty ambitions were but I think there’s a crowd that loves those kinds of films, if they’re well-made and honestly trying to make this suspenseful and scary and get to know the characters, if they’re really trying to do that, there’s nothing to be embarrassed about. Yes, it’s a B movie but it’s a blast. I really like that kind of picture.“
So do I, Mister Raimi. I’ll choose a B movie over any other option most of the time. I loved Crawl, and would love to see Crawl 2 make it into production.
While he waits for his chance to make another alligator movie, Aja (who also directed Piranha 3D back in the day) has signed on to make the shark thriller sequel Under Paris 2 for Netflix.
Would you like to see Aja and Raimi get Crawl 2 into production? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.
