Alexandra Aja to Direct Netflix Sequel to Under Paris

Netflix has appointed Alexandra Aja to direct the sequel to the French shark film Under Paris. The Hollywood Reporter named Aja for the role; she previously unleashed hungry alligators across a flooded Florida in Crawl (2019) and needle-toothed fish in Piranha 3D (2010).

Original director Xavier Gens has stepped aside for the follow-up, though no reason has been given. Gens had suggested future entries in the Under Paris universe would take place in the "entirely submerged" capital city. The first movie, titled Sous la Seine (Under the Seine) in its homeland, followed marine researcher Sophia as she confronts past traumas to save Paris from a mutated shark that can survive in fresh water.

It folded the 2024 Summer Olympics' decision to open the River Seine for triathlon and marathon swimming—despite pollution concerns—into a sea-monster premise, and it ended with other major cities being infested with fresh-water sharks, leaving the direction of the sequel open.

France, Paris