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What Cthulhu Means For Underwater’s Sequel
Underwater ends with Norah (Kristen Stewart) sacrificing herself to slay the beast, but director William Eubank confirming that the final monster is definitely Cthulhu has serious ramifications for the creature feature’s potential sequel.
Cthulhu is one of many Great Old Ones in the pantheon of what people now call Lovecraftian horror, based on the short stories of H.P. Lovecraft. Underwater is a movie with many threats. Initially, characters fight to survive collapsing sub-marine quarters. Midway through, the movie introduces deadly underwater predators that quickly kill off most of the survivors. It is the final monster, however, that had audiences reeling. Eubank confirming the Eldritch horror is, in fact, Cthulhu, only bolstered fan interest.
Although Norah blows herself up, along with the underwater drill, to defeat the massive beast and its children, Underwater’s final scenes left the movie open-ended. As credits roll, audiences learn that the two survivors did make it to the surface, but the horrors they experienced have been covered up by Tian Industries, the company that owns and operates the deep-sea drill. The ambiguity of the movie’s final moments is only compounded by a news snippet proclaiming Tian Industries will recommence drilling in the near future.
How Underwater Sets Up A Sequel That Ups The Horror
An Underwater sequel could do what Split did for Unbreakable, expanding on the world-building. Since most of the people who witnessed Cthulhu are dead, a sequel would need to introduce a new cast of characters to the horrors that lay beneath. Moreover, the new movie could introduce new monsters. By confirming the monster is Cthulhu, Eubank opened the Underwater universe to the entire Lovecraftian pantheon. If Tian Industries plans on drilling more, deeper, it opens up the possibility of coming across the Gargantuan Father Dagon and the grotesque Mother Hydra, Gods who complete the triad of ocean-dwelling ‘Deep Ones’. Underwater takes several cues from Ridley Scott’s Alien, from the claustrophobic setting to the indefatigable antagonist. It could continue this trend into the next movie by also making its sequel lean more into action/thriller elements.
Even if the sequel doesn’t expand on types of monster, it is still significant that the original is Cthulhu himself. It probably means Norah’s sacrifice was in vain. In the original short story, “The Call of Cthulhu”, Cthulhu is destroyed towards the end, only to quickly re-form. A sequel could also lean into the second fearful element of the short story: the Cthulhu-obsessed cults that exist around the world. Cults are a staple of horror movies. Ever since Rosemary’s Baby, audiences have been terrified of not just evil supernatural forces, but also the humans that worship them. One of the main effects of Cthulhu in the story is the psychic toll he takes. Everyone who becomes aware of him either goes mad or dies mysteriously. Underwater left two survivors to explore this on in a sequel.
Underwater: How Cthulhu Represents Fears Around Climate Change
In Underwater, Emily (Jessica Hanwick) claims the underwater horrors they experience are ultimately self-inflicted: “We’ve drilled too deep. We’ve taken too much.” Cthulhu represents the threat of existential annihilation, the ocean itself fighting back against humanity. Like in Underwater’s inspiration, Alien, the antagonist is an analogy. Humanity disturbs the deep ocean. The possible cost was unknown, but the characters still suffered. If Tian Industries continues drilling, it compounds the greed that woke Cthulhu in the first place. If they continue their ways, knowing what they are risking, they open the door to worse consequences. “The Call of Cthulhu” ends with Cthulhu sleeping, waiting to be woken again. Humans’ greed and insistence on deep-sea drilling could find the characters in Underwater’s sequel driving out a monster that is impossible to put back.
