In the sun-soaked waters off Australia’s Gold Coast, Dangerous Animals delivers a pulse-pounding edge of the seat thriller and shark horror that dares to ask: who’s the real predator? Directed by Sean Byrne, known for his gritty and intense films like The Loved Ones and The Devil’s Candy, this 2025 release takes a bold swing at revitalizing the tired shark movie subgenre by injecting it with a uniquely human menace. Anchored by a career-defining performance from Jai Courtney, the film is a wild, bloody ride that balances campy thrills with viscous dread.
The film opens with a deceptively charming Jai Courtney as Tucker, a burly, bearded boat captain running “Tucker’s Experience,” a shark cage-diving tour that lures thrill-seeking tourists to Queensland’s waters. Courtney’s charisma is electric, masking Tucker’s sinister intentions as he escorts a young couple onto his weathered vessel. From the outset, Byrne establishes a tense atmosphere, with cinematographer Shelley Farthing-Dawe’s sweeping shots of the ocean against the claustrophobic confines of Tucker’s boat. The film wastes no time revealing Tucker’s true nature: a shark-obsessed serial killer who feeds his victims to great whites, filming their gruesome deaths for his personal collection.
Enter Zephyr, played with fierce determination by Hassie Harrison, a free-spirited American surfer living out of her van and chasing waves along the Gold Coast. Harrison plays Zephyr is a character that lives the loner lifestyle shaped by a past in foster care and a deep connection to the ocean. After a fleeting romantic encounter with Moses (Josh Heuston), Zephyr finds herself kidnapped by Tucker and trapped in the bowels of his boat. The dynamic between Zephyr and Tucker becomes the film’s heartbeat, a cat-and-mouse game where her resourcefulness clashes with his sadistic control. Harrison holds her own against Courtney’s towering presence, crafting a final girl who’s more than just a scream queen.
Byrne and screenwriter Nick Lepard deserve credit for overturning expectations, steering clear of the shark-centric spectacle of films like The Meg or Sharknado. Instead, Dangerous Animals uses its predators as a tool for Tucker’s depravity, emphasizing the human monster over the marine one. The sharks, captured with stunning real footage, are treated with a respect that avoids demonizing them.
Dangerous Animals succeeds as a horror thriller hybrid, carried by Courtney’s unforgettable turn as a villain who’s equal parts terrifying and charismatic. It’s bloody, stylish, and wildly entertaining ride that knows exactly what it wants to be: a popcorn flick with a wicked bite.
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