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Steven Spielberg’s Jaws left an indelible mark on cinema upon release in 1975, ushering in the summer blockbuster as we know it. Like its many taglines, Jaws also made people afraid to go into the water thanks to a newfound fear of man-eating sharks. And the film’s massive box office success created a tsunami of copycats, launching the “sharksploitation” subgenre.
But emulating Jaws only goes so far, and the subgenre has been forced to constantly find inventive new ways to reimagine the shark horror movie. One surefire but cheeky way to stand out from an increasingly crowded subgenre is to add novelty to the concept, often by altering the setting. If people are too afraid to go into the water, the shark should go to the people.
Luckily, there’s no shortage of weird, wacky settings that dramatically alter the formula…
Here are eleven of the most outrageous settings in shark horror movies.
Jaws 3D – A Trip to SeaWorld
The third entry in the Jaws franchise attempts to shake things up by leaving Amity beaches behind to relocate to SeaWorld in Florida. There, Martin Brody (Dennis Quaid) finds himself contending with a shark mother and pup that have invaded the water parks and begun feasting upon employees, water skiers, and more. In keeping with the SeaWorld theme, Jaws 3D even incorporates dolphins that frequently save the protagonists from becoming chum. Not even the 3D gimmick could save this entry, though, and the subsequent installment returned to more familiar beaches.
Shark Night 3D – Lake Party Crashing
A weekend getaway on the lake among college friends turns into an aquatic nightmare when they discover the hard way that sharks have infiltrated. Shark Night also employed 3D upon initial release, and much like Jaws 3D, it’s not so far-fetched in setting. What makes this shark slasher feature so unusual in its environment is the sheer variety of sharks collected in a Louisiana lake. Great whites, hammerheads, and even deep sea cookiecutter sharks are among the predators culling the college kids’ numbers.
47 Meters Down: Uncaged – Enclosed Cave System
Johannes Roberts’s 47 Meters Down trapped a pair of sisters on the ocean floor thanks to a faulty diving cage. For the sequel, Roberts takes it much further by trapping friends in a submerged Mayan city. That doesn’t sound all that strange on paper, but the sharks that stalk and prey upon the divers have lived so long within the cave system, isolated from the open water, that they’ve evolved to the darkness. Roberts demonstrates the sequel’s off-kilter, cheeky tone with a screaming fish that incites the cave entrance’s collapse, dooming the divers to a harrowing fight for survival. Yes, screaming fish and blind cave-dwelling sharks.
Sand Sharks – Get It? They’re Land Sharks.
Thanks to Jaws, the image of a shark’s dorsal fin cutting through the water as it barrels toward prey evokes fear. If you wondered what that’d look like on land, fear not; Sand Sharks evolves its predators to chase down humans on sandy beaches and beyond. That’s terrible news for the locals!
House Shark – A Shark House Party
The tagline, an unmistakable riff on Jaws, says it all: “You’re going to need a bigger house!” An ex-cop seeks the aid of a shark expert and a real estate agent, and a hungry shark invades his home. The “what if Jaws, but indoors” concept serves as the silliest possible parody of Spielberg’s classic; there’s no pretense here. Just a trio of fools versus a crudely made shark terrorizing a house, complete with lowbrow humor. You’ll know whether it’s for you within minutes.
Bait 3D – Supermarket Siege
If there’s a secondary recurring theme on this list beyond the continued break from scientific reality, it’s the employment of 3D to enhance the over-the-top shark mayhem. In Bait 3D, sharks get trapped in a crowded grocery store mid-robbery, thanks to a tsunami. In other words, the eclectic group of characters must overcome palpable tension and put aside their mistrust to find a way out of the flooded supermarket and evade getting eaten. Bait 3D really leans into its setting, delivering fun set pieces from the tops of grocery store shelves to crumbling parking garages.
Sharknado – You Guessed It. Tornadoes.
The Syfy feature that launched a franchise saw a freak tornado strike Los Angeles, scooping up a plethora of sharks to terrorize the city. When you’re too afraid to enter the water, the tornados will happily bring the man-eating sharks to you. The original 2013 film surprisingly bides its time delivering on its title, setting up the characters and the meteorological events that lead to the shark-filled “sharknados.” Don’t worry; the franchise’s six installments ensure no shortage of sharks chomping down from the sky. It gets more outlandish as the franchise continues.
Avalanche Sharks – Ski Resort Invasion
Forget the ocean; Avalanche Sharks transports the aquatic predators to the Canadian mountains. Snow is just frozen water crystals, after all, right? This sharksploitation feature takes Sharknado’s concept and runs with it, with a ski resort under siege by a snowy avalanche of angry sharks. Logic be damned, but at least you can see what happens when sharks meet snow.
Sharks of the Corn – Not Even Cornfields Are Safe.
When countless sharksploitation entries ape Steven Spielberg’s classic, this one switches gears entirely by borrowing a page from Stephen King. Strange things are happening in Druid Hills, Kentucky. Or rather, strange things are happening within the cornfields. Instead of “He Who Walks Behind the Rows” inspiring children to commit murder, the body count here comes from a killer shark. Naturally.
Shark Side of the Moon – In Space, No One Can Hear You Scream.
Russian scientists create humanoid-shark supersoldiers that escape the lab and then get sent to the moon in the appropriately titled Shark Side of the Moon. Cut to forty years later, when an American space mission to the moon leads to the discovery that the sharks have advanced. Thus, killer sharks make their way to space. While they’re more humanoid than typical shark horror, reality holds no meaning in this subgenre, so it all counts.
Ghost Shark – Ghost Shark Is EVERYWHERE.
Sharks seeking revenge is old news. What about a shark seeking revenge posthumously as a ghost? Ghost Shark doesn’t even require much to enact vengeance; any tiny amount of water will do. Car wash buckets, swimming pools, slip and slides, water coolers, fire hydrants, drains, and more become feeding grounds for this outrageous movie monster. Ghost Shark has no trouble coming up with the most unpredictable, outlandish deaths that leave you guffawing while shaking your head.