🦈Manufacturing Monsters – How Hollywood Demonised Sharks🎥
For centuries, our understanding of the ocean has been shaped not only by science but by stories, myths, literature, and visual media. While many narratives celebrate the beauty and mystery of marine creatures, a significant number portray marine predators in an ominous and threatening light. Such portrayals have had profound real-world consequences, affecting conservation efforts, fishing practices, and public perception, often to the detriment of entire ecosystems.
When it comes to marine animals depicted in a negative light, few suffer more than sharks. The widespread cultural fear originated with Peter Benchley’s 1974 novel, Jaws, and was further perpetuated the following year with Steven Spielberg’s film adaptation. The story of a great white shark terrorising a sleepy beach town captivated audiences, but also instilled a lasting image of sharks as ruthless maneaters.
Most authors dream of their work having a widespread, lasting impact, but Benchley later regretted his novel. In an interview, he admits, “What I know now, which wasn’t known when I wrote Jaws, is that there is no such thing as a rogue shark.”
In a recent article for the Blue Planet Society, Sarah Eager takes a deeper look at how Hollywood has demonised sharks and the tremendous impact it has had on these vital ecosystem engineers.
👇 Read the article here:
https://blueplanetsociety.org/manufacturing-monsters-how-hollywood-demonised-sharks/
Since July 2025, I have been serving as the Community Advocates Coordinator at WildHub, where I coordinate initiatives to engage, support, and empower our community advocates in advancing WH’s mission.
Beyond WildHub, I wear a few different hats. I work as a researcher and lecturer in Sweden, teaching courses on environmental law, political and historical ecology, and disaster risk management. I also mentor undergraduate and postgraduate students, collaborate with faculty members, and contribute to ongoing research projects.
I’m passionate about giving back through volunteer work. I support a few conservation and animal welfare organisations with research and advocacy to help drive positive change. When I’m not working, you’ll find me hiking forest trails with my dog or enjoying a good cup of coffee.
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🦈 Thank you for sharing this powerful reflection, Flavia. It’s eye-opening to see how deeply media narratives have shaped our collective fear of sharks, and how those portrayals have real consequences for conservation. I’ve never seen a shark in real life, but I’ll admit that most of the movies I’ve watched made them seem terrifying! It’s fascinating (and a bit sobering) to learn that this fear was largely manufactured, and that even Peter Benchley came to regret the impact of his story.
I’m curious, how do you think we can shift public perception and storytelling to highlight sharks as vital ecosystem engineers rather than villains? Are there examples of media or campaigns that have done this well?
Thanks again for helping us rethink the power of narrative in conservation. 🌊
There are quite a few marine conservationists who have dedicated their life to change the public perception of sharks, someone I have been following for years is Cristina Zenato. She did a podcast on this, here: https://forcesfornature.com/podcast/changing-the-perception-about-sharks-with-cristina-zenato/
Educating people about sharks and debunking myths & misconceptions are key. I know there are programs that incorporate shark literacy in schools to help break the "cycle of fear". For example see The Shark Trust or Save Our Seas Foundation programs.
Personally, I am a big fan of documentaries as tools to humanise and celebrate sharks. Sharkwater by Rob Stewart is a widely credited documentary with changing global perception of sharks and sparking anti-finning laws. This is a favourite of mine and one of the first documentaries I watched that made me re-think my fear of sharks!
David Attenborough has also contributed to show sharks as critical players in the marine ecosystem while educating the public about sharks with accurate, science-based storytelling (See Blue Planet II, by the BBC).
More on how persecution affects sharks here: https://saveourseas.com/worldofsharks/threats/persecution
Thank you, Flavia,
I'll be sure to check them out.
Loved the article! And not just movies, some books, unfortunately, have also shaped this mindset. I think conservation education should seriously work on breaking down these myths and biases.
Agree! Public education is vital.
I haven't read it myself, but I heard that Why Sharks Matter: A Deep Dive with the World's Most Misunderstood Predator by David Shiffman is a good read.
Haven't read this one. I'll check it out. Thank you, Flavia!