9 Underrated Shark Movies To Watch After 'Thrash'
Thrash is proof that audiences’ fascination with sharks isn’t going anywhere. The Netflix movie tells the story of the survivors of a Category 5 hurricane. After their town floods, something much more frightening puts their lives in danger: sharks. And the only way to make it out alive is to work together.
After watching Thrash, viewers might be looking for their next creature feature with sharks front and center. Instead of putting together a list of the best shark movies you could watch, we’re doing something a little different. These 9 films are the most underrated shark movies to watch after Thrash. Expect innovation when it comes to the sharks, but also a surprising amount of heart and action.
For fans of creature features, it might be surprising to see Deep Blue Sea on this list of underrated shark movies to watch after Thrash. But this 1999 film has never gotten the same love or admiration as other classic shark movies like Jaws (1975) or its sequels.
In Deep Blue Sea, a group of scientists on an isolated research facility sees the sharks they’ve been experimenting on turn on them. This movie is action-packed, knows how to do build up, and understands that even with good intentions, actions have consequences. It’s made all the better by how every character feels essential to the story, especially LL Cool J’s Preacher and his bird.
Almost 20 years later, a sequel was made titled Deep Blue Sea 2 in 2018. And then, Deep Blue Sea 3 happened in 2020. Both are subpar in comparison to their originator. If you’re looking for a similar creature feature that has action, knows how to rev up tension, and has believable dialogue, check out Lake Placid (1999). This one has a gigantic crocodile instead of a shark, but still works.
The main reason why Under Paris is on this list of underrated shark movies is the timing. In this film, you have a grieving scientist forced to face her tragic past when a giant shark appears in the Seine. But no one swims in the Seine, so that shouldn’t be a problem, right? Wrong. The film sees the Seine cleaned up, with a big swim meet happening in the river, giving the shark a feast if not stopped.
As for the timing of this movie, it was released during the 2024 Paris Olympic Games. And the Seine was touted as being clean enough for Olympic swimmers to swim in it. So after watching this melodramatic movie with great shark attacks but a main character you hate and cheesy dialogue you love, you couldn’t help but watch the Olympics with a bit of caution. What if there was a shark in the Seine and these Olympians were in danger?! Making viewers consider the possibility of something fictional becoming reality is a flex.
Luckily, Under Paris has a sequel in the works, so we’ll see what happens after that surprising ending. Until then, viewers should check out The Meg (2018) and The Meg 2: The Trench (2023). Both movies have humans in massive groups just chilling in the water before sharks attack. (More on that below.)
Out of all the films on this list, The Meg is the most balanced. In this movie, a massive prehistoric shark terrorizes a rescue mission to the bottom of the ocean. Things just get worse when said shark escapes and starts running amok in the ocean. Whose humanity’s only hope outside of a well-funded team of researchers and marine experts? Well, Jason Statham, of course.
The Meg carefully balances between being really ridiculous, but also making total sense. It’s the movie that makes you truly understand Statham’s range. He is still the tough guy, but he is also kind, funny, and respectful while still being the guy who stars in movies like The Transporter (2002) and Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw (2019). And even better, this movie understands it is a shark movie, with great comedic timing and a strong emotional heart that proves it knows how to balance dialogue, action, and shark hijinks.
Viewers who are looking for something similar to The Meg should watch The Mechanic (2011) or Crank (2006). They aren’t shark movies, but Jason Statham is there, and they all have basically the same vision but in a slightly different font.
No Way Up is the shark answer to Snakes on a Plane (2006). In a terrifying sequence of events, a plane crashes into the Pacific Ocean. Somehow, the plane ends up resting perilously on the edge of a ravine with the airliner completely submerged. And just when the passengers think things can’t get worse, sharks make it on the plane and start picking off the deceased and living.
Out of all the movies on this list, somehow No Way Up feels like it could be something that could happen to any of us, especially because most of us have been on a plane. In a lot of respects, it reminds viewers of how the logs in Final Destination 2 (2003) unlocked a core fear for millennials. The simplicity of No Way Up’s concept unlocked a new fear for flying, even if it doesn’t make total sense.
If you’re looking for more movies like No Way Up, check out The Last Breath (2024). That movie has hapless humans trying to survive sharks while stuck in another mode of transportation, aka a WWII battleship wreck.
Something in the Water is the only shark movie on this list with an LGBTQ+ lead. It tells the story of a group of five friends, and their fight to stay alive after their dream bachelorette adventure turns into a nightmare. Think The Descent (2005) but with sharks. Instead of a cave, they’re in the open ocean with no way to call for help.
Despite a cheesy beginning, this movie works because no matter what has separated these women, they care for each other. That care turns to sacrificing for each other, but also making the hard decisions when they have to. And with their main set being just water, the movie relies on the strength of the actors to sell every emotion and bit of dialogue. Spoiler, they do a great job at it.
If viewers are looking for similar movies to Something in the Water, they should watch Nowhere (2023). While this movie doesn’t have sharks, it has the absolute fear of being stuck in the middle of the ocean with no help coming. But this time, the main character is trapped in a floating maritime container.
While many fans of shark movies like the original 2017 movie 47 Meters Down, its sequel 47 Meters Down: Uncaged is underrated. In this movie, two sisters break the rules and dive into a ruined underwater city that their father is mapping out. What none of them expect are sharks that have adapted to the darkness, making them even more deadly.
On the surface, this feels like any of the other shark movies on this list. But the reason why it’s on this underrated shark movies list is because it has heart and an ending that isn’t confusing. The sisters aren’t close. It’s only while trying to survive the sharks that they solidify their bond as family in a way that feels real and not forced. Also, on the shark kills front, the film gets creative with the scuba-diving aspect of it all without being super cheesy.
If you started with 47 Meters Down: Uncaged, it would do you well to watch the OG film, if only to experience Mandy Moore and Claire Holt. But if you’re looking for creative places for people to be trapped with sharks, check out Bait (2012). That movie sees a tsunami happen, trapping shoppers in a supermarket with a great white shark, because of course.
The Shallows is the most intense shark movie on this list, and it’s not because it has a giant shark like in The Meg or seems highly impossible like in No Way Up. The Shallows sees a woman surfing on a secluded beach find herself stranded only 200 yards from shore on a rocky outcropping with a shark circling her. The intensity comes from how the movie paces itself, building tension that keeps you locked in as the tide rises and her options narrow.
Since this movie only has two main characters, the woman and the shark, The Shallows can’t depend on dialogue. Instead, it puts you in her shoes and walks you through every decision or worry she has with some clever camera work. Since it feels like a puzzle, you get why she does one thing instead of another. Basically, it’s easy enough to follow, but intense enough to keep you on the edge of your seat.
Viewers looking for a similar underrated survival creature feature should watch Crawl (2019). It’s similar to Thrash in that a huge hurricane hits a town, leading to its protagonists trapped in rising waters. But instead of worrying about sharks, the lead has to worry about alligators.
Before Sharknado (2013), there was Syfy’s Sharktopus. Half-shark and half-octopus, the military creates this creature before it escapes and causes all sorts of havoc. Just by the title alone, you know it’s going to be a ridiculous movie. But there’s nothing quite like watching a shark come on land and prove that nowhere is safe from its jaws (or tentacles).
Sharktopus is the height of shark movie buffoonery. The ridiculous nature of it all is the main reason why you can ignore how bad the CGI is or how stilted the dialogue is. Basically, it’s an experience, and that’s enough to get it on this underrated shark movies list.
If you want more of this half-shark and half-octopus, you’ll be delighted to hear there are two sequels: Sharktopus vs. Pteracuda (2014) and Sharktopus vs. Whalewolf (2015). In a plot twist, the sharktopus is the hero.
Another Syfy channel gem is Ghost Shark. In this creature feature, a great white shark is killed. And instead of staying dead, the shark comes back as a ghost to exact its revenge on the residents of a small town. Like Sharktopus, the title is enough to clue viewers in that this movie is ridiculous. The difference is how creative this movie gets with its kills.
Of course, a shark attack usually happens in open water. But because this shark is a ghost, it can get you anywhere, as long as there’s some type of water. That means if you’re jumping in a pool or relaxing in the tub, this shark can get you. And it works because it feeds into childhood fear of what could be in the water, even if not in open water.
Ghost Shark is only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to sharks in unexpected places. If viewers want more, they should check out House Shark (2017) or Sand Sharks (2011), because nowhere is safe when humans get creative.
