Eric Bana Has a Mysterious New Case Full of Twists in “Force of Nature: The Dry 2” Trailer (Exclusive)

Joining Eric Bana for another mystery in the Australian wilderness are Anna Torv and Deborra-lee Furness

Eric Bana faces another twisty case in the upcoming thriller Force of Nature: The Dry 2.

The sequel to 2020’s Australian mystery The Dry finds agent Aaron Falk (Bana) investigating a disappearance deep in the Victorian mountain ranges. PEOPLE is exclusively debuting the first trailer for the sequel.

As with its predecessor, writer-director Robert Connolly adapts the second book in author Jane Harper’s bestselling series of crime novels.

"Jane Harper’s follow up to The Dry provided us with a great opportunity for Eric and I to expand on the character of Aaron Falk introduced in that film adaptation," Connolly tells PEOPLE.

"I grew up in the Blue Mountains outside Sydney, on the edge of an extraordinarily beautiful wilderness area that I spent my childhood exploring," he adds. "Force of Nature was a chance to make a film that could take audiences around the world into this unique environment."

Joining Bana, 55, this time around are Anna Torv, Deborra-lee Furness, Robin McLeavy, Sisi Stringer, Lucy Ansell, Richard Roxburgh and Tony Briggs.

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“After receiving a distressing call from an informant,” reads a synopsis, Falk and Carmen Cooper (played by Jacqueline McKenzie) “head deep into the Giralang Ranges to investigate the whereabouts of their corporate whistle-blower Alice,” played by Torv. 

“The four women who were recovered from the bush each seem to be hiding something about their traumatic experience. As Falk and Cooper close in on the case, they uncover worrying details about the connections between these women and begin to fear for the safety of their missing informant as a storm threatens to halt the search,” the synopsis concludes.

As someone in the trailer notes, the foggy wilderness is “a bit remote for a corporate retreat,” which is the five women’s purported explanation for being lost. “But it’s also convenient if you want to make someone disappear.”

The Dry was 2021’s second-highest grossing film in Australia and became the country’s 15th highest grossing film of all time.

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“The Dry was such a huge undertaking and a huge project, we weren't casting our minds hugely forward down the road,” Bana in a statement shared with press. Also a producer on both movies, the actor said the team was “aware of this book” that followed Harper’s original, but waited to see how audiences responded to the 2020 adaptation before opting for more. 

“I was really excited to continue Aaron’s narrative alongside these really complicated female characters,” said producer Bruna Papandrea in a statement. The sequel “will give people who love The Dry a reason to come back.”

Furness, 68, also said in a statement that the story’s strong female presence attracted her to the script: “I love that it was an ensemble. I love that it was about a group of women out in the wild, challenged by the force of nature and challenged by their own nature.”

Following its Australian release Feb. 8, Roadshow Films will release Force of Nature: The Dry 2 in U.S. theaters May 10. 

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