Meg 2: The Trench is almost here, but the shark-infested sequel won't include Li Bingbing, who mysteriously dropped out of the cast.

Summary

• Li Bingbing's absence from The Meg 2 remains a mystery, with no official explanation given for her departure, leading to speculation and conjecture.
• Li Bingbing, a Chinese superstar, has only appeared in one other movie since her role in the first Meg, possibly indicating a focus on personal matters or other commitments.
• The Meg 2 provides an explanation for Suyin's absence in a harrowing twist, revealing that the character died between the two movies, leaving her fate open-ended and subject to speculation.

One former cast member from The Meg won't be coming back for its sequel, sparking curiosity about why the Li Bingbing Meg 2: The Trench character is absent. Directed by Ben Wheatley, Meg 2 is based on a science-fiction novel The Trench by Steve Alten and picks up after the events of the first movie, in which a research team had a brush with a Megalodon thought to have been extinct for thousands of years. In the second installment, Jason Statham's Jonas Taylor leads a new research team to brave the deepest and darkest depths of the ocean to take on more prehistoric predators.

The sequel raises the stakes, as the movie features Jonas Taylor taking on not one, but three huge aquatic antagonists, but there's no sign of Li Bingbing's oceanographer Suyin. Details about Meg 2's cast reveal that the actress was attached to Meg 2 as of 2022, but exited in February for undisclosed reasons, and rather than recast her role, Wu Jing, one of China's highest-grossing actors, was given a different character to fill the vacancy. Statham and Li Bingbing had good chemistry in the first action-adventure movie, which felt like an early 2000s throwback, and the sequel is missing something without the Li Bingbing Meg 2 character.

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There Is No Confirmed Reason For Li Bingbing's Meg 2 Absence

When an actor departs a project so close to the movie's production there's usually an explanation, whether it's creative differences with the cast and crew or last-minute schedule conflicts. However, there has been no official reason for the Li Bingbing Meg 2 absence. The only statement that has come to light is that she left for undisclosed reasons and had to be recast. This lack of clarity surrounding Li Bingbing's exit has led to speculation among fans and media, with theories revolving around undisclosed personal reasons, leaving the specifics of her departure a subject of conjecture.

Where to watch The Meg 2: The Trench

Li Bingbing Has Only Starred In 1 Other Movie Since 2018's The Meg

Since appearing in 2018's The Meg, Li Bingbing hasn't appeared in anything besides Ordinary Hero, a Tony Chan-directed drama focusing on a brave flight attendant during an airline emergency, which came out in 2022. Li Bingbing is considered a Chinese superstar, and after rising to prominence in Seventeen Years has enjoyed a successful career in film, television, and as a singer. No stranger to genre movies, she's appeared in everything from the Resident Evil franchise to Transformers as well as dramas like A World Without Thieves and Waiting Alone.

According to a recent edition of Vogue China in March 2022, just one month after she exited Meg 2, Li Bingbing separated from her long-term boyfriend of several years, Hsu Wen Nan. Focusing on her mental health during a time of emotional duress might have impacted her decision to make fewer films. According to the United Nations Environment Programme, Li Bingbing has also been known to partner with corporations for her L.O.V.E Green movement as a Goodwill Ambassador for China, and promoting a low-carbon and environmentally friendly lifestyle might have taken precedence.

Why The Meg 2 Reveals Suyin's Fate

While it would have been easy to ignore the character's absence with newcomers to the franchise being none the wiser, The Meg 2 explains what happened to Suyin. However, though fans satisfyingly get an explanation about why Suyin is absent, it's totally harrowing, and it rules out any chance of Li Bingbing returning in The Meg 3. Early in The Meg 2: The Trench, it's revealed that Suying died between the two movies. Nevertheless, it's still open-ended, as the sequel doesn't actually explain how Suyin died, whether it was a shark attack or something more natural, and it'll likely remain a mystery that'll be speculated about for years.

Source: United Nations Environment Programme

• The Meg 2: The Trench

  Release Date:

  2023-08-04

  Director:

  Ben Wheatley

  Cast:

  Jason Statham, Cliff Curtis, Sienna Guillory, Jing Wu, Shuya Sophia Cai, Skyler Samuels, Melissanthi Mahut, Page Kennedy

  Rating:

  PG-13

  Runtime:

  116 Minutes

  Genres:

  Action, Adventure, Horror

  Studio(s):

  CMC Pictures, DF Pictures, Di Bonaventura Pictures, Apelles Entertainment

  Distributor(s):

  Warner Bros. Pictures

  prequel(s):

  The Meg