“Greenland 2: Migration” An Unnecessary Sequel That Doesn’t Live Up To The First Movie
- Matt Palmer
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Back in January, I worked on a review of the 2020 movie “Greenland,” which is a tension-filled and emotional movie that should be checked out. Now that the sequel is now available to stream on HBO Max, I was eager to see how the sequel would turn out, even though I really didn’t think that the previous movie really needed a sequel.
“Greenland 2: Migration” picks up five years after the Clarke comet strike. When earthquakes destroy their bunker that they’ve been calling a home, the surviving Garrity family evacuates and travels across a desolate Europe.
They journey toward the comet’s impact crater in southern France, rumored to be a thriving safe environment.
Even though I didn’t think the 2020 movie really needed a sequel, I wanted to remain optimistic since the trailers looked all right. While some of the sequel can be slightly entertaining, “Greenland 2” ended up being an unnecessary sequel that fails to live up to the tension and emotional depth of the first movie.
Now, even though the sequel wasn’t nearly as tense or exciting as the 2020 movie, it does have a couple moments here and there that can garner a bit of excitement. There’s one sequence that’s not only thrilling but can also be a little vertigo-inducing, especially if you have seen it on the big screen. This scene involves the Garrity family crossing a rickety rope-and-ladder bridge over a chasm at what used to be the English Channel.
One thing I really enjoyed was the creative and believable design of the ruined, frozen European wasteland. The visual effects effectively depicted submerged cities, tidal
waves, and unique environmental hazards like radioactive electrical storms. There's a fairly quiet sequence where we see some survivors navigate Liverpool by boat and we see the top of historic buildings poke out above the waterline, offering a somber look at how thoroughly the planet’s environment has changed since the comet’s impact five years prior.
The main thing that really didn’t work for this sequel is that “Greenland 2” delivers quite a few plot conveniences and a series of forced coincidences. Despite the world being globally decimated by the comet, the main characters effortlessly find and operate multiple vehicles throughout the movie. When in reality, modern fuel significantly downgrades and becomes unusable after a year or so.
There’s also quite a few times where the Garrity family runs out of resources or face an inescapable corner, they conveniently run into very cooperative allies who offer them new directions, food or water just in the nick of time.
“Greenland 2: Migration” received mixed to polarized reviews. While critics and some general audiences praised its emotional family stakes, rugged lead performances (especially from Gerard Butler who did a good job) and a few intense survival sequences, many felt the post-apocalyptic narrative can feel repetitive, very predictable and ultimately unnecessary compared to the 2020 original.
MPA: Rated PG-13 for some strong violence, bloody images, and action (runtime 98 minutes)
Initial release date: January 6, 2026
Streaming services: HBO Max/various PVOD services (as of writing this review)
Filming took place in Alton, Hampshire, in May 2024, where parts of the town were transformed into a post-apocalyptic setting.
The sequel was announced in 2021, with Gerard Butler, Morena Baccarin, and director Ric Roman Waugh returning from the first film. STX later acquired distribution rights during the Cannes virtual market.
Unlike the first film, which was released in the United States primarily through video-on-demand during the COVID-19 pandemic, the sequel is distributed by Lionsgate.
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