Jump to content

Sharksploitation

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Sharksploitation is a subgenre of exploitation film that involves sharks or shark attacks.[1][2] The genre emerged in the wake of the 1975 film Jaws and its sequels, but fell in popularity soon after.[3] The 1999 film Deep Blue Sea brought it back to public prominence. Other examples of sharksploitation films include Mega Shark Versus Giant Octopus (2009), Dinoshark, Sharktopus (both 2010), Snow Shark (2012), Ghost Shark (2013), Avalanche Sharks (2014), and the Sharknado film series (2013–2018).[4]

In 2023, a feature-length documentary film about the subgenre, titled Sharksploitation, was produced and released by Shudder.[5][6][7]

Notable sharksploitation films

[edit]
Year Films Series Genre
1975 Jaws Jaws Thriller
1975 Sharks' Treasure N/A Adventure
1976 Mako: The Jaws of Death N/A Thriller
1976 Shark Kill N/A Adventure
1977 Tintorera, also known as Tintorera: Killer Shark. N/A Horror
1978 Jaws 2 Jaws Thriller
1978 Cyclone (Spanish: El Ciclón), also known as Terror Storm N/A Survival/Horror
1981 The Last Shark, also known as Great White N/A Horror
1983 Jaws 3-D Jaws Thriller
1987 Jaws: The Revenge Jaws Thriller
1989 Night of the Sharks N/A Action
1989 Deep Blood, also known as Sharks or Sangue negli abissi (Italian, lit. "Blood in the Abyss") N/A Adventure/Horror
1995 Cruel Jaws N/A Thriller
1999 Deep Blue Sea Deep Blue Sea Sci-fi/Horror
1999 Shark Attack Shark Attack Thriller
2000 Shark Attack 2 Shark Attack Thriller
2002 Shark Attack 3: Megalodon Shark Attack Thriller
2003 Open Water[a] Open Water Survival/Thriller
2003 Red Water N/A Action/Horror
2003 Shark Zone N/A Horror
2004 12 Days Of Terror N/A Horror/Thriller
2004 Blue Demon N/A Sci-fi/Horror
2005 Hammerhead: Shark Frenzy, also known as Sharkman or Hammerhead N/A Sci-fi/Action/Horror
2005 Raging Sharks N/A Sci-fi/Action/Horror
2005 Spring Break Shark Attack N/A Action/Adventure/Drama
2008 Shark Swarm, also known as Great White N/A Thriller
2008 Shark in Venice, also known as Sharks in Venice in the U.S. N/A Natural horror/Action
2009 Jaws in Japan, also known as Psycho Shark N/A (unrelated to the Jaws franchise) Horror
2009 Malibu Shark Attack, also known as Mega Shark Of Malibu It is a part of the SyFy Channel's Maneater series (which is unrelated to the Shark Attack or Mega Shark franchises), along with Shark Swarm, Shark Killer, and 25 other natural horror creature features. Natural horror
2009 Mega Shark Versus Giant Octopus Mega Shark Versus Creature feature
2010 Dinoshark N/A Horror/Comedy
2010 Mega Shark Versus Crocosaurus Mega Shark Versus Creature feature
2010 The Reef N/A Thriller
2010 Sharktopus Sharktopus Sci-fi/Creature feature
2011 Sand Sharks N/A Horror/Comedy
2011 Shark Night N/A Thriller
2011 Super Shark N/A Sci-fi/Action
2011 Swamp Shark N/A Thriller
2012 2-Headed Shark Attack Multi-Headed Shark Attack Survival horror
2012 Bait 3D N/A Horror/Disaster
2012 Dark Tide N/A Action/Horror/Thriller
2012 Jersey Shore Shark Attack N/A Horror/Comedy
2012 Jurassic Shark, also known as Attack Of The Jurassic Shark Jurassic Shark Horror/Comedy
2012 Snow Shark: Ancient Snow Beast Snow Shark Horror/Comedy
2012 Ghost Shark Ghost Shark Horror/Comedy
2013 Sharknado Sharknado Sci-fi/Disaster
2014 Avalanche Sharks N/A Horror/Comedy
2014 Mega Shark Versus Mecha Shark Mega Shark Versus Horror/Comedy
2014 Sharknado 2: The Second One Sharknado Sci-fi/Disaster/Comedy
2014 Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda Sharktopus Horror/Sci-fi/Creature feature
2015 3-Headed Shark Attack Multi-Headed Shark Attack Action/Horror
2015 Ghost Shark 2: Urban Jaws Ghost Shark Supernatural/Horror/Comedy
2015 Mega Shark Versus Kolossus Mega Shark Versus Sci-fi/Comedy
2015 Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! Sharknado Action/Horror/Comedy
2015 Roboshark, also known as Robo Shark vs. Navy Seals N/A Action/Adventure/Comedy
2016 Ozark Sharks, also known as Summer Shark Attack N/A Horror/Thriller/Comedy
2016 The Shallows N/A Survival/Horror
2016 Sharkansas Women's Prison Massacre N/A Sci-fi/Horror
2016 Sharkenstein N/A Sci-fi/Action/Comedy
2016 Sharknado: The 4th Awakens Sharknado Sci-fi/Disaster/Comedy
2017 5-Headed Shark Attack Multi-Headed Shark Attack Sci-fi/Horror
2017 47 Meters Down 47 Meters Down Survival/Horror
2017 House Shark N/A Horror/Comedy
2017 Open Water 3: Cage Dive[a] Open Water Found footage/Survival/Horror
2017 Sharknado 5: Global Swarming Sharknado Sci-fi/Disaster/Comedy
2018 The Last Sharknado: It's About Time Sharknado Sci-fi/Disaster/Comedy
2018 Deep Blue Sea 2 Deep Blue Sea Sci-fi/Horror
2018 The Meg N/A Sci-fi/Action
2019 47 Meters Down: Uncaged 47 Meters Down Survival/Horror
2019 Capsized: Blood in the Water N/A Survival/Horror
2020 Deep Blue Sea 3 Deep Blue Sea Sci-fi/Horror
2020 Sky Sharks N/A Sci-fi/Comedy/Horror
2022 The Reef: Stalked The Reef Horror
2022 The Requin N/A Horror/Thriller
2023 Meg 2: The Trench The Meg Sci-Fi/Action
2023 Cocaine Shark, also known as Kanizame Shakurabu[b] N/A Crime/Drama/Horror
2023 Big Shark N/A Horror/Comedy
2024 The Black Demon N/A Sci-Fi/Thriller
2024 No Way Up N/A Survival/Thriller
2024 Something In The Water N/A Survival/Thriller
  1. ^ a b Open Water 2 has been excluded from this list. Although it is nominally part of the Open Water franchise, it is thematically unrelated to either Open Water or Open Water 3.
  2. ^ Cocaine Shark does feature character and geographical connections to both the Jurassic Shark franchise and Sharkenstein film, it is thematically unrelated to either film at this stage, with actors playing different characters in each film.

Other sharksploitation films

[edit]

The films below are more shark films that do not yet have their own pages here, or their notability has been unclarified.

Year Films Series Genre IMDb/Alternate Link
1950 Killer Shark N/A Adventure IMDB Wikipedia.en
1969 Shark!, also known as Caine and Man-Eater N/A Action IMDb/Wikipedia.en
1981 Beyond the Reef N/A Adventure/Romance IMDb/Wikipedia.en
1991 Mission of the Shark: The Saga of the U.S.S. Indianapolis N/A Action/Drama/History IMDB
2001 Shark Hunter N/A (Unaffiliated with The Shark Hunter (1979), The Shark Hunters (1963), or The Shark Huntress (2021)) Action/Adventure/Horror IMDB
2002 Megalodon N/A (Unaffiliated with the 2018 film of the same name or The Meg franchise) Action/Adventure/Horror IMDB
2003 Dark Waters N/A Action/Adventure/Horror IMDB
2003 Pool Shark (short) N/A (There are multiple short films that share this title) Horror IMDB YouTube - Full film, creators account
2004 Snow Shark (short) Snow Shark (This short is set before the events of Snow Shark: Ancient Snow Beast) Horror IMDB YouTube - Full film, creators account
2004 Shark Attack in the Mediterranean [de], also known as Hai-Alarm auf Mallorca (German, lit. Shark alarm in Mallorca) N/A Action/Adventure/Drama Wikipedia.de IMDB
2008 Marina Monster N/A Horror/Comedy IMDB
2012 Shark Week also known as Shark Assault N/A Action/Adventure/Horror Wikipedia.fr IMDB
2012 Jaws of the Shark N/A Comedy/Horror IMDB
2013 Spreeshark (short) N/A Comedy/Horror IMDB
2014 90210 Shark Attack N/A Drama/Horror/Sci-fi IMDB
2015 Sharknado: Heart of Sharkness Sharknado Comedy/Mocumentary IMDB
2015 Raiders of the Lost Shark Jurassic Shark Action/Adventure/Comedy IMDB
2015 Shark Exorcist N/A Fantasy/Horror IMDb
2015 Shark Lake N/A Action/Thriller IMDb/Wikipedia.de
2015 Shark Killer N/A Action/Horror/Thriller IMDb/Wikipedia.de
2015 Shark Island, also known as Zombie Shark N/A Action/Adventure/Horror IMDb
2015 Sand Shark: Not in 3D (short) N/A Action IMDB YouTube - Full film, creators account
2016 Ice Sharks N/A Action/Comedy IMDb
2016 Dickshark N/A Sci-fi/Comedy IMDb
2016 Piranha Sharks N/A Action/Comedy IMDb
2016 Planet of the Sharks Planet Of The Sharks Action/Comedy IMDb
2016 Dam Sharks N/A Action/Comedy IMDb
2016 Atomic Shark, also known as Saltwater and Saltwater: Atomic Shark [de] N/A (Unaffiliated with the Lisa Palenica film of the same name)[citation needed] Action/Comedy IMDb
2016 Pool Shark (short) N/A (There are multiple short films that share this title) Horror IMDb YouTube - Full film, creators account
2017 Empire of the Sharks Planet Of The Sharks Action/Comedy IMDb
2017 Land Shark N/A Action/Adventure/Comedy IMDB
2017 Mississippi River Sharks N/A Action/Adventure/Comedy IMDB
2017 Trailer Park Shark, also known as Shark Shock N/A Action/Adventure/Comedy IMDB
2018 Surrounded, also known as Frenzy N/A Action/Adventure/Drama IMDB
2018 6-Headed Shark Attack [de] Multi-Headed Shark Attack Action/Comedy IMDb
2018 Megalodon Megalodon (The Asylum) Action/Adventure/Horror IMDB
2018 Santa Jaws N/A Action/Comedy IMDb
2018 Shark Attack (short) (also known as Summer Of '89) N/A Horror YouTube - Full film, creators account
2019 Bad CGI Sharks N/A Adventure/Comedy/Horror IMDb
2020 Shark Season N/A Action/Horror/Thriller IMDB
2020 Ouija Shark Ouija Shark Horror/Comedy IMDb
2020 Shark Encounters of the Third Kind N/A Horror IMDB
2020 From the Depths N/A Drama/Horror/Mystery IMDB
2021 Megalodon Rising Megalodon (The Asylum) Action IMDB
2021 Great White N/A Thriller IMDb
2021 Sharks of the Corn N/A Horror/Comedy IMDb
2021 Noah's Shark N/A Action/Adventure/Horror IMDB
2021 Jurassic Shark 2 - Aquapocalypse Jurassic Shark Action/Horror/Comedy IMDb
2021 Huge Shark, also known as Red Water N/A Horror IMDb
2021 Apex Predators, also known as Jaws of Los Angeles N/A Horror IMDb
2021 Mako (Arabic: فيلم ماكو) N/A Adventure/Thriller IMDB
2021 Bigfoot Vs Megalodon N/A Adventure/Sci-fi/Comedy IMDB
2021 Virus Shark N/A Sci-fi/Horror IMDB
2021 Swim N/A Action/Horror IMDB
2022 Bull Shark, also known as Blood In the Water Bull Shark Action/Horror/Drama IMDb
2022 Maneater N/A Action/Horror/Thriller IMDB
2022 No Shark No Shark Drama/Comedy/Horror IMDB YouTube - Full film, creators account
2022 Shark Side of the Moon N/A Action/Horror/Sci-Fi IMDB
2022 Pool Shark (short) N/A Horror/Thriller YouTube - Full film, creators account
2022 Ouija Shark 2, also known as Ouija Shark vs Tarot-Gator Ouija Shark Horror IMDb
2022 Shark Waters N/A Horror/Thriller IMDb
2022 Alien Shark N/A Drama/Horror/Sci-fi IMDb
2022 Thrashed (short) N/A Horror IMDb YouTube - Full film, creators account
2023 Blind Waters N/A Action/Horror/Thriller IMDB
2023 Jurassic Shark 3: Seavenge''[a] Jurassic Shark Horror/Comedy IMDB
2023 Doll Shark N/A Horror/Comedy IMDB
2023 Invisible Shark No Shark Drama/Comedy/Sci-fi IMDB YouTube - Full film, creators account
2023 Everything Will Kill You: Rip (short) Everything Will Kill You Horror/Thriller YouTube - Full film, creators account
2023 Narco Shark N/A Horror/Comedy IMDb
2023 Puppet Shark N/A Comedy IMDb
2023 Deep Fear N/A Action/Thriller IMDb
2023 Megalodon: The Frenzy Megalodon (The Asylum) Action/Adventure/Horror IMDb
2023 Bull Shark 2 Bull Shark Action IMDb
2024 CHUM!, also known as The Last Of Sharks N/A Horror IMDb
  1. ^ Jurassic Shark 3 Does feature character and geographical connections to both the Sharkenstein and Cocaine Shark films, Sharkenstein makes an appearance. However it is thematically unrelated to the other film at this stage, with actors playing different characters in each film.

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Onion, Rebecca (June 16, 2005). "Sharksploitation! Jaws and the sad decline of the shark movie". Slate. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
  2. ^ Squires, John (June 22, 2023). "'Sharksploitation' – Shudder Original Shark Horror Documentary Premieres This Summer". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  3. ^ Choi, Charles Q. (June 20, 2010). "How 'Jaws' Forever Changed Our View of Great White Sharks". LiveScience. Retrieved April 27, 2020.
  4. ^ Howard, Jules (August 19, 2018). "The last 'Sharknado' won't be the end of sharksploitation films. But sharks do need saving". NBC News. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  5. ^ de la Fuente, Anna Marie (August 2, 2021). "Doc 'Sharksploitation' Delves into the Sub-Genre Spawned by Steven Spielberg's 'Jaws' (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  6. ^ Squires, John (June 22, 2023). "'Sharksploitation' – Shudder Original Shark Horror Documentary Premieres This Summer". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
  7. ^ Mack, Andrew (July 18, 2023). "Sharksploitation Trailer: Shark Horror Doc Debuts on Shudder This Friday". Screen Anarchy. Retrieved July 25, 2023.
[edit]