Eli Roth to Direct Mega-Shark Movie 'Meg'

A film based on Steve Alten’s New York Times bestselling novel Meg has been in development for almost 20 years, but the mega-shark film is finally on its way to the big screen, thanks to Warner Bros. and Eli Roth. Meg’s long, long journey to the big screen began in 1997 at Disney, but with Jurassic World emerging with the highest-grossing opening weekend of all time, it seems like a great time to get Meg off the ground.

According to Variety, Roth has signed on to direct Meg, based on Alten’s book Meg: A Novel of Deep Terror. The story centers on a Navy deep-sea submersible pilot named Jonas Taylor, and his terrifying encounter with a predator long believed to be extinct: a 70-foot, 60,000 pound shark. Meg is, of course, short for “megalodon.”

Disney initially snatched up the film rights when the book was released in 1997, but they failed to successfully translate the story to the big screen. Warner Bros. has held the rights for some time now, and with the recent box office success of films like Pacific Rim, Godzilla and Jurassic World, it seems that they’re finally motivated to get Meg going.

Roth will direct Meg, which is based on a screenplay by Dean Georgaris. The director has two other films releasing this year, including cannibal film The Green Inferno, which was initially set for release in 2014. Knock Knock, his thriller starring Keanu Reeves, will also hit theaters this year.

In addition, Roth will also host Shark After Dark on the Discovery channel during Shark Week.