Steven Spielberg’s Jaws centers around the Fourth of July, making it a go-to annual watch for fans of sharks, but that’s not the only reason the fish are so popular throughout July, as it’s also the month in which Discovery celebrates its iconic Shark Week. While the entire week is full of informative programs about the animals, proving that fact is far more fascinating than fiction, sometimes audiences get inspired to check out more fantastical adventures featuring the fish. Given how seminal of an experience Jaws might be, viewers who are looking to sink their teeth into new experiences are in luck.
While Jaws can currently be streamed on Peacock and Shark Week specials are available to stream on Max, a number of other shark-themed movies are available to stream with subscriptions to other services. Both Max and Shudder have multiple films available to stream, while some are also streaming through services like PlutoTV and Tubi.
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For those wanting to continue to celebrate the fish by embarking on outings about the animals, we’ve got ten movies worth checking out. Given that horror movies are known to stretch the truth about science, the subsequent films bend the rules of science or break them entirely, so it’s worth noting that they’re all about as accurate in their representations of sharks as King Kong is an accurate reflection of gorillas. Scroll down to see our picks for some of the best shark movies that aren’t Jaws.
Fin (2021)
Thanks to films like Cabin Fever and Hostel, filmmaker Eli Roth is a name just about any horror fan would recognize, but with Fin, audiences are treated to an experience that proves that fact is far more frightening than fiction.
At least a partial response to the impact of Jaws, Fin is a documentary about the disturbing and barbaric industry of shark finning. In his pursuit to uncover the unseen elements of catching the fish, cutting off their fins, and tossing the still-living sharks back into the ocean to either be killed by other animals or essentially drown by not being able to swim to get water to pass over their lungs, Roth showcases not only how horrendous the industry is, but also the lengths that figures within the industry will go to in order to keep a lid on these practices.
While Fin is not an experience for the faint of heart, it highlights just how integral sharks are to the ocean and will reframe how any viewer will watch a movie that frames the creatures as monsters.
Where to Stream: Max
The Meg (2018)
Arguably the film that stretches the truth about sharks the furthest, The Meg is about as believable as an entry into the Jurassic Park franchise.
A deep-sea excursion manages to break a threshold in the depths of the ocean, one that unleashes the supposedly extinct megalodon onto unsuspecting ships. Despite being an entirely absurd experience, the film does manage to get across the idea of just how massive the real-life fish was, as it manages to dwarf even the impressive great white. The Meg is aware of its silliness, as it’s less frightening than it is an action-comedy, but with sequel Meg 2: The Trench arriving in theaters in August, it’s as good a time as any to check out the debut film.
Given that Meg 2 comes from acclaimed director Ben Wheatley, who delivered ambitious horror films like Kill List and In the Earth, we’re hoping that this sequel embraces a bit more of a sense of terror than the original.
Where to Stream: Max
Open Water (2003)
One of the many films that was inspired by the lo-fi success of The Blair Witch Project, Open Water took a minimal approach to an all-too-real terror.
When a couple goes Scuba diving, a mistake in a headcount results in their boat leaving before they returned to the vessel. The pair are understandably concerned with their survival, as they combat thirst, hunger, and sleep deprivation in hopes of surviving long enough to be retrieved. Making the situation all the more intimidating are the sharks lurking around them, as their inquisitive bites could be what spell the duo’s demise.
With the film being based on true events of a headcount gone wrong, the film’s effectiveness largely comes from the concept of being abandoned in the open ocean, while the sharks themselves are merely one of the elements that the couple hopes to survive.
Where to Stream: Max
Deep Blue Sea (1999)
For more than 20 years after the release of Jaws, horror filmmakers attempted to capture the excitement of that 1975 film, with Deep Blue Sea marking one of Hollywood’s biggest attempts at recreating the experience.
Set at an ocean-bound research facility, a group of scientists attempts to find a way to treat Alzheimer’s, as the film purports that sharks are impervious to the condition. During their scientific trials, the researchers inadvertently create super-smart sharks, who create all sorts of deadly havoc once the facility starts to flood.
Even though the film embraces some seemingly scientific jargon, Deep Blue Sea is an entirely outlandish though crowd-pleasing experience. With the number of low-budget films that embraced a bizarre premise in the wake of Jaws‘ success, it marks one of the most high-profile and well-funded adventures in that spirit, which is outlandishly entertaining from start to finish.
Where to Stream: Available to Rent on Amazon, Fandango, and Apple TV+
The Shallows (2016)
Horror films like House of Wax and Orphan showcased just how much style filmmaker Jaume Collet-Serra could inject into any type of plot, so when he lent his skills to the Blake Lively-starring The Shallows, the film’s aesthetics helped elevate a relatively straightforward narrative.
When a surfer (Lively) breaks her board and lands on a rock just 200 yards off the shore, it’s already a perilous situation, but with a whale carcass attracting a deadly great white shark, even making a swim she could otherwise handle becomes a race against time.
Similar to the rudimentary nature of Open Water, The Shallows creates tension with a minimal storyline, and while the shark itself is displayed as a bit more ruthless than it would be in the wild, the film makes for a thrilling story about one survivor hoping to outlast the elements long enough for a rescue.
Where to Stream: Tubi
47 Meters Down (2017)
While 2017’s 47 Meters Down was considered by some to be a copycat of the success of The Shallows the year earlier, the Johannes Roberts film was actually filmed before that film’s release, though the excitement surrounding The Shallows allowed for 47 Meters Down to film more scenes with a bigger budget.
As implied by the title, the movie focuses on two sisters who go cage diving and, when their support snaps, they fall 47 meters to the ocean floor. Unlike The Shallows, these sisters are submerged underwater, putting a pretty definitive expiration date for how long they can survive.
Even though 47 Meters Down might be derivative of other shark-themed horror movies, it’s still lifting elements from some of the subgenre’s best installments, while also condensing a harrowing ordeal that lasts for days in other movies to just a few hours. While it doesn’t break the mold, it’s still an entertaining and expedited descent into terror.
Where to Stream: Available to Rent on Amazon, Fandango, and Apple TV+
The Reef (2010)
Much like Open Water, The Reef marks another film that was inspired by true events and immerses the audiences in the unsettling experience by putting cameras right on the surface of the water.
When a group of friends is transporting a yacht through the South-East Pacific, they hit a coral reef that caused the ship to capsize. With an island being 12 miles away, four of the survivors begin to swim to the island as one member stays with the yacht. Making the trek easier said than done is the four friends have to swim through waters teaming with sharks.
The movie is based on the real-life tragedy in which Ray Boundy witnessed his two friends Dennis Patrick Murphy and Linda Anne Horton die due to shark wounds after their boat sunk off the coast of Australia. The premise of Open Water might have been inspired by an actual occurrence, but The Reef borrows more specifics from the 1983 tragedy upon which it’s based.
Where to Stream: Prime Video
Bait (2012)
Originally titled Bait 3D, this was one of multiple movies that aimed to capitalize on the growing trend of 3D movies, but with it being an Australian picture, not many American audiences got to witness everything Bait had to offer.
After a catastrophic tsunami, survivors are trapped inside a flooded grocery store, with the situation made all the more deadly when the survivors realize a shark has also been washed into the supermarket.
Despite the SYFY network being known for delivering audiences countless creature features focusing on all manner of aquatic beasts, Bait delivers an experience that is just slightly more believable than any other weather-inspired adventures while also featuring slightly more talented performers. Add to this the fact that some of the sequences were specifically designed for 3D photography and you get a very silly experience that is elevated above the point of pure schlock.
Where to Stream: Tubi, Freevee
Sharksploitation (2023)
We’ve already mentioned just how many horror movies aimed to recreate the magic of Jaws by all means necessary, and while a large majority of these films range from unwatchably bad to somewhat tolerable, Sharksploitation touches upon dozens of movies that both pre-date Jaws and also those that were directly inspired by it.
More than merely cataloging every horror film featuring sharks, director Stephen Scarlata’s film also covers the myths and legends that inspired those stories in the first place, dating back centuries, while also shedding a light on the fallout of what these seemingly harmless movies can cause for the animal itself. We can’t quite recommend that viewers track down all of the films mentioned within Sharksploitation, though the movie itself serves a bit as a highlight reel for the vast wealth of sharky schlock out there.
Where to Stream: Shudder
Ocean of Fear: Worst Shark Attack Ever (2007)
One of the most beloved and powerful scenes in the original Jaws is when Quint (Robert Shaw) recalls surviving the tragedy of the USS Indianapolis, which caused the death of hundreds of sailors. The made-for-TV Ocean of Fear, which was part of Discovery Channel’s Shark Week,ย is a dramatization of those events and, while it doesn’t offer escapist entertainment, it does show just how harrowing that ordeal really was.
In July of 1945, the Indianapolis was struck by torpedoes and sent 900 men into the water. In addition to all of the other dangers of attempting to survive an ocean-bound disaster, the survivors were targeted by a variety of sharks, as the site of the sink was home to oceanic white tip sharks and tiger sharks. Ultimately, only 300 of the sailors who went into the water were rescued four days later.
The scene in which Quint recalls the story was originally a ten-page monologue, with director Spielberg then allowing Shaw to shorten it, as he ultimately cut the monologue in half. For audiences who were intrigued by the full-length recollection that would have more thoroughly chronicled the horrors the survivors suffered through, Ocean of Fear sheds insight into the tragedy.
Where to Stream: Available for purchase on YouTube
Honorable Mention: Zombi 2 (1979)
As the name implies, Zombi 2 from director Lucio Fulci has a plot focusing on the undead coming back to life, which is an unofficial sequel to George A. Romero’s Dawn of the Dead. Despite a plot that has nothing to do with sharks, the film features one of the all-time greatest scenes involving a shark in horror history.
With an island community being infected by a zombie uprising, a group of travelers on their way to the island take a brief excursion to pause for underwater photography. This sequence shows a zombie underwater, who is then targeted by a tiger shark.ย
The scene itself has no impact on the overall narrative, but it features a real shark trainer in full zombie makeup colliding with a genuine tiger shark. While the shark itself wasn’t trained, it was fed before the sequence and also given sedatives, making it much more docile. The trainer put on a performance of being attacked by the shark, so even if the subdued tiger shark appeared largely under control, it marks a rare occasion in which a human got into close-quarters combat with a shark and lived to tell the tale.
Where to Stream: Shudder
Which is your favorite shark movie? Contact Patrick Cavanaughย directly on Twitterย orย on Instagramย to talk all thingsย Star Warsย andย horror!
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