Planning a Beach Vacay? Time to Watch These 15 Shark Movies
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Admit it: most of us are at least a little scared of swimming in the ocean, and that's probably because we've been traumatized by all those ocean disaster films and shark attack movies (why my 5th-grade teacher thought Jaws would be a fun field trip watch is a mystery to me—I am scarred for life). Also, why are there so many of them?!?
Anyway, anyone who’s seen even 10 minutes of Shark Week knows that sharks don’t just start attacking humans randomly, unless attacked or provoked. Also, lots of sharks are endangered, and the actual number of people who died by shark attack in 2021 is, I'm not kidding, 11. So take all these films with a big cup of salt, because Hollywood loves to scare us with mostly made-up things. There’s always going to be some bikini-clad A-lister who lives somewhere near the water, and then bam! Their legs are bit off by a shark. C'mon, that’s like 80 percent of the movies on this list.
But that doesn’t mean they have to be bad (or, at the very least, boring). There's the "scary movie inspired by a true story that you spend hours researching afterward" (hey, Deep Water, you terrify me). There's the obvious classics (Jaws and Jaws 2, although that second one is debatable), and the movie inspired by the classics that ended up being a hilarrible farce (aww, Deep Blue Sea, we still love ya).We've also got a full serving of the ridiculous: the sharks in the tornadoes (Sharnado, ze classic) and fossils-come-to-life (The Meg-like).
There’s a shark movie for every person. And here are some of the most exciting, inane, and bone-chilling shark flicks that’ll make you feel like you're 10 again and cowering on the beach.
1. The Shallows
The premise of this movie is ridiculous—a beautiful girl goes surfing alone in a secluded cove and ends up on a rock fighting for survival before the tide comes in—but the execution is flawless. Every single piece of Blake Lively’s wardrobe becomes useful in her fight against the murderous great white that wants to eat her for dessert (a whale carcass is dinner), and Blake’s costar, Steven Seagull, truly deserved an Oscar.
2. Jaws
Jaws has the fine distinction of being not only the greatest shark movie ever made but also one of the greatest horror movies ever made. No matter that fake-shark technology has advanced about a million percent over the past 40 years—Jaws is still terrifying enough that you wouldn’t want to watch it during a beach vacation. And it definitely helps that John Williams’s score is so iconic that it conjures doom no matter where you are when you hear it.
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3. Open Water
This horror show is based partially on the true story of a couple left to fend for themselves in the open ocean after the rest of their scuba-diving expedition forgets them. What happened to the real people remains a mystery, but Open Water’s characters meet a very, um, definitive end.
4. 3-Headed Shark Attack
This movie will not only make you terrified of the water, but also cruise ships (lol). Danny Trejo, Karrueche Train, and Rob Van Dam must try and protect the cruise ship they're on that gets attacked by a mutated shark. Mind you, this shark has already eaten one end of the ship and they must stop it from—eating the whole damn thing, ofc.
5. Jaws 2
Horror *legend* Jaws had no business becoming a franchise. That said, Jaws 2 isn’t...that bad. Another shark starts attacking the beach and now there are kids and teens involved. Say what you want, it’s still better than the computer animated horror-inducing mess that the other Jaws sequels were.
6. Sharkwater
This is dedicated to my fellow Planet Earth stans. The documentary filmmaker takes us through the waters of some of the most beautiful places on Earth, while busting myths about sharks and helping us realize how important for the ecosystem they really are. At the mo, you can watch it for free on Vimeo.
7. Deep Blue Sea
In this 1999 treasure, scientists accidentally engineer shark brains so that sharks are smarter and more dangerous, thus making it problematic when they start escaping from the research pens and attacking people. This movie is recommended for those of you who saw Snakes on a Plane and thought, Hmm, I wonder what it’s like to watch Samuel L. Jackson fight sharks instead?
8. Sharknado
Say what you will about the quality of this cult favorite, but there’s no question it revived the public’s interest in intentionally bad made-for-TV movies. The title says it all, but just to make it super clear: Los Angeles gets hit by a cyclone that causes shark-filled water spouts all over the city. You’ll laugh until you remember the movie was such a hit that it spawned a zillion sequels.
9. The Reef
After their boat capsizes, a group of friends attempt to rescue themselves by swimming through open water to get to the nearest land. Unfortunately, that water turns out to be home to a shark who’s not that willing to share his territory with these human swimmers, and chaos ensues. And that’s why you never agree to get on a boat!
10. Mega Shark Versus Giant Octopus
Is this movie bad? *Yes*. But does it feature a humongous shark fighting a humongous octopus? Yes, so I fail to see the problem. Also, it's free on YouTube at the moment, so you have no reason not to watch it. But, like, if you wanna buy the DVD because you love it that much, follow your bliss.
11. Blue Water, White Death
Finally, something a *little* bit less sensational. This 1971 documentary follows the quest to film a great white shark underwater for the first time. The doc doesn’t exactly diminish the shark’s reputation as a killer, but it’s an interesting tale nonetheless.
12. 47 Meters Down
In this 2017 gem, two sisters (hi, Mandy Moore!!) are on vacation in Mexico when they decide to go shark diving with some sketchy dudes they meet in a bar. Naturally, the chain holding their shark cage breaks, so they get stuck—wait for it—47 meters down and must fight off the bends, faulty air tanks, and, yes, a giant shark.
13. The Meg
This movie features Jason Statham fighting a 2-million-year-old megalodon! (which you will hear him say, in that accent, approximately a thousand times.) It is literally perfect. Also, it’s based on a book that has sequels, which means this could end up being a franchise. God bless.
14. Bait
First of all, this movie was released in 3-D, which, yes please. But also, the plot is so extra: A bunch of hot people are chilling in a grocery store when a tsunami hits and floods the building. Unfortunately, a great white shark is washed into the store—ugh, hate when that happens—and proceeds to murder everyone.
15. 47 Meters Down: Uncaged
One of the characters in this sequel to 47 Meters Down, Catherine, stays on the boat while the rest of her friends dive into the water and explore an ancient submerged city and—sing along if you know the words—are attacked by sharks. Catherine might just be the smartest person in all these movies.
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