Sharks. For some, just the thought of these ocean-dwelling creatures with teeth to spare is enough to keep people from swimming in any open waters, but movies like The Meg show that they're still popular cinema subject matter. Jaws, in particular, managed to forever terrify the world almost 50 years ago, but it's far from the only shark attack-based fright film in existence.
While sharks taking a bite out of humans is actually extremely rare, that certainly doesn't stop the filmmaking industry from doing its best to scare people into theaters with a steady flow of shark attack flicks to choose from.
Updated on July 28th, 2022 by Melody MacReady: Shark Week has come once again and has delivered another marathon of shark-related documentaries. Despite these documentaries showcasing that sharks are not the murder machines that Hollywood makes them out to be, audiences love the thrill of shark movies.
Due to the immense popularity of Steven Spielberg's Jaws, many filmmakers have attempted to catch that same lightning in a bottle for decades. Some attempt bold and brave new ideas while others clearly just attempted to rehash the original. With so many shark attack movies out there, it's impossible to stop at just ten for Shark Week.
Shark Night (2011) - 4.0
Free With HBO Max, Hulu, & YouTube TV; For Rent On Prime Video, Google Play, YouTube, Vudu, Apple TV
It's a basic setup for many horror films: a bunch of young college students goes on vacation on a lake when horror strikes. The twist here is that it's a saltwater lake and sharks are infesting it. However, Shark Night knows what kind of horror movie it is and doesn't aim to be anything else but a popcorn flick.
There are some gory kills to enjoy as well as some impressive CGI and practical effects for the multiple types of sharks featured throughout. It's not often that a shark movie uses multiple species and as a result, the kills end up being different depending on the shark.
Great White (2021) - 4.1
In the modern era of shark movies, instead of trying to rip off Jaws, most go for the formula set up by movies like The Shallows. Someone stuck on the ocean in a fight for survival situation with a shark twist and that's basically what Great White is.
Great White focuses on a group of survivors trying to make it to shore on a life raft when, as the title suggests, a great white shark stalks them. It doesn't really deliver anything new or spectacular but isn't anything terrible; it's mostly a typical shark attack thriller.
The Last Shark (1981) - 4.3
Free With Prime Video, The Roku Channel, Tubi, And Pluto TV
Also known as Great White in certain regions, The Last Shark is one of the more infamous knockoffs of Jaws. It borrows similar characters and plotlines to tell a very basic shark attack film but the animatronic shark combined with some silly death scenes lead to an entertaining experience.
The animatronic is better than most knockoffs but that doesn't make it good. It always rises out of the water the exact same way, almost as if it's trying to replicate the poster of Jaws. It's available on most services for free and can make for a hilarious experience with friends.
Dark Tide (2012) - 4.3
Free With Pluto TV; For Rent On YouTube, Google Play, & Prime Video
At first, Dark Tide presents an interesting twist on the shark attack formula. Instead of unnaturally aggressive sharks, Halle Berry's character is a shark whisperer and the sharks are treated as animals. Berry's character is haunted by the memory of a shark attack that killed a friend and colleague.
To get over this and make some money, she takes a man and his son to look at sharks. Unfortunately, Dark Tide is criticized for being rather dull for the majority of its runtime with the one highlight being the sharks and a solid performance from Halle Berry. Even then, there have been other shark movies that do it better.
47 Meters Down: Uncaged (2019) - 5.0
Free With Prime Video; For Rent On Apple TV, Google Play, & Vudu
Teenage stepsisters Mia and Sasha, along with a couple of friends, decide to have a fun day of unsupervised scuba diving in some underwater caves that Mia's dad has been working in. Before they know it, everyone's trapped with dwindling air supplies while being hunted by hungry and blind albino sharks. It embraces a similar concept and sense of claustrophobia as The Descent in a way.
This sequel to has nothing in common with the previous film of the franchise aside from the general concept of some young women doing their best to not get eaten by sharks. While 47 Meters Down: Uncaged isn't anything terribly fresh, this summer shark attack movie does have a Saturday afternoon watchability to it thanks to director Johannes Roberts' efforts.
Bait (2012) - 5.2
Free With Prime Video, The Roku Channel, Tubi, FuboTV, & Univision; For Rent On Apple TV, Google Play, & Vudu
A tsunami traps a bunch of shoppers in an Australian supermarket with some large Great White sharks. There are added wrinkles, like some untrustworthy gun-toting thieves and a loose electrical wire to deal with, but sharks in a flooded grocery store is the main gimmick.
Bait is very much so the kind of movie for fans of a fun creature feature. There's an eclectic cast of characters, solid effects, and it doesn't overstay its welcome at a fairly brisk 93 minutes. This should satisfy anyone whose interest was piqued at the concept of sharks eating people in an Australian grocery store.
U.S.S. Indianapolis: Men Of Courage (2016) - 5.2
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With Nicolas Cage as the main star, this World War II movie already has something to enjoy. It's less of a shark movie at first and focuses on being a war epic about delivering the atomic bomb and surviving the sinking of the U.S.S. Indianapolis. This is the same story that Quint famously tells in Jaws.
After the Navy officers go into the water, it becomes a fight for survival. Not only are sharks stalking the rafts to pick people off but the ocean itself is as much of a problem as the fauna beneath it. For a low-budget war film, it's far from the worst thing to watch.
47 Meters Down (2017) - 5.6
Free With Hulu; For Rent On Prime Video, Google Play, Apple TV, And YouTube
Mandy Moore and Claire Holt play sisters who go cage diving on a structurally-questionable boat. That turns out to be a poor way of having an up-close experience with some sharks when the cage they're in drops to the ocean floor 47 meters below the surface.
While the sequel leans into violent sharks attacks, 47 Meters Down is more of a thriller. Once the sisters get on the boat, the tension builds nicely. A healthy amount of suspension of disbelief is required, but fans will be happy to know that there are several other chilling movies like 47 Meters Down.
The Meg (2018) - 5.6
Free With TNT, TBS, And YouTube TV; For Rent On YouTube, Vudu, SlingTV, Prime Video, Google Play
A team of researchers exploring the Mariana Trench, the deepest oceanic trench on Earth, encounter a previously thought extinct species of shark known as a Megalodon appears. The Meg, as they call it, proceeds to wreak havoc on anyone unlucky enough to cross its path and that's where rescue diver Jason Statham comes in.
It may not be one of Jason Statham's best movies, but he versus a Megalodon was enough of a sell to get The Meg to a gross of 530 million dollars worldwide, the highest-grossing shark attack movie of all time, which in turn led to sequel Meg 2: The Trench's August 4th, 2023 release date. As for the film itself, it's a wonderfully over-the-top shark attack flick that should be on any creature feature fan's to-do list.
The Reef (2010) - 5.8
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Five people find themselves in a dangerous situation when the yacht they're traveling on capsizes in a coral reef, leaving them stranded in the middle of the ocean. With no means of contacting anyone for help, the group is left with the choice to wait on the overturned vessel and hope for the best or take their chances swimming through shark-infested waters to find land.
A movie based on a true story of Ray Boundy's shark attack experience from 1983, The Reef is more of a harrowing tale of the hard and frightening choices necessary in that kind of situation than a traditional shark attack movie. There are sharks, for sure, and people do get eaten by them, but this one's more tense and sudden than bloody and exciting.
Open Water (2003) - 5.8
Free With Prime Video; For Rent On YouTube, Google Play, Vudu, & Apple TV
A couple goes on a scuba diving tour only to find themselves stranded in the ocean when the boat they're with forgets about them and departs. Based on the true story of Tom and Eileen Lonergan, who were never found; which means that the majority of the film is fictionalized.
Open Water itself leans into the horrors of a shark attack as much as being left behind to eventually die at sea. Knowing this scenario actually occurred goes a long way in selling the hellish situation the couple endures.
Jaws 2 (1978) - 5.8
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A few years after Amity Island first experienced a shark with a taste for human flesh, another one comes along. Chief Martin Brody continues to be a great protagonist and finds himself as the sole voice of concern, once again, only this time he takes matters into his own hands when his two sons wind up playing around in the path of the killer shark.
While Jaws was an instant classic, Jaws 2 is simply amusing enough. Between the shark attacks and '70s fashions, there's certainly entertainment to be had as long as expectations are kept to a minimum. There is one bit of Jaws 2 that made a forever mark on pop culture, though, and that's the tagline: "Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water..."
Deep Blue Sea (1999) - 5.9
Free With HBO Max; For Rent On YouTube, Google Play, Apple TV, Vudu, Prime Video
Scientists are working on a cure for Alzheimer's. They're using a few genetically altered Mako sharks as guinea pigs for their experiments, only things get violently out of their control when the sharks have other plans in mind.
Director Renny Harlin takes the viewer on an endlessly entertaining ride of super-smart sharks attacking people in wonderfully messy ways. One of the most famous aspects has to do with Samuel L. Jackson's famously surprising death scene, but there are plenty of other amusing happenings to keep Deep Blue Sea moving.
The Shallows (2016) - 6.3
Free With Peacock; For Rent On Apple TV, Vudu, YouTube, Prime Video, Google Play
Blake Lively stars as a surfer whose good time is ruined by a bloodthirsty Great White Shark. She just needs to get from a rock she's stuck on to the nearby shore, but that proves increasingly difficult since the shark has set its sights on her with every intention of eating her up.
A simple premise combined with Blake Lively's very effective performance makes The Shallows a must-see for any fan of shark attack movies. The backstory parts are needless, but director Jaume Collet-Serra proves adept at the various shark attack sequences. Lively's friendly relationship with a nearby seagull also proves to be a point of concern that the film handles well.
Jaws (1975) - 8.1
When a woman's mangled body is found washed ashore one day, Chief Brody must do everything in his power to put a stop to the shark attack killings that continue to rock the peaceful Long Island town of Amity Island. Not only the best shark attack movie, but Jaws is also one of the greatest movies of all time according to many measurements of success.
Despite its very rocky production, Jaws would become one of the first blockbusters, launch the successful career of Steven Spielberg, and spawn multiple sequels. Even though it would hurt the reputation of sharks forever, it still remains an all-time classic.