With their reputation as dominant, apex predators and their names themselves offering up the perfect Horror movie title, you would think that there would already be a whole sub-genre of killer whale Horror films. But apart from 1977’s Orca, creature features featuring the Orcinus orca are almost nonexistent… until now.
In theaters, On Digital, and On Demand, January 16, 2026, through Lionsgate, there is a new entry hoping to expand the genre, simply titled Killer Whale. Directed by Jo-Anne Brechin (One Perfect Match 2023, When Love Springs 2023) and co-written alongside Katharine McPhee, the film follows best friends Maddie (Virginia Gardner: Halloween 2018, Fall 2022) and Trish (Melanie Jarnson: Mortal Kombat 2021, Blacklight 2022).
After Maddie’s long-term boyfriend is killed in an accident right in front of her, she retreats from the world. Whereas Maddie once had ambitions to become a professional cello player, she now keeps to herself. Determined to help Maddie recover some sense of ambition and adventure, Trish convinces Maddie to come along with her on a once-in-a-lifetime vacation to Thailand.
It is during this ill-fated trip that Trish also convinces Maddie to break into an orca-themed attraction park and take a glimpse at Ceto – a once-famous killer whale. After narrowly escaping being caught trespassing, the two women are unaware that, in the meantime, Ceto has killed his trainer and escaped captivity. Now Ceto has trapped them in an atoll and is out for vengeance after years of human mistreatment.
With so few creature features available featuring orcas, you could fairly assume that that would mean that there would be a plethora of original ideas ready for them to star in. Unfortunately, that does not seem to be the case here, and throughout Killer Whale feels like a number of shark film rip-offs – only the shark has been replaced by an orca. For example, Maddie and Trish only have a rock to shelter on – much like The Shallows. Ceto escapes from a Seaworld-type attraction and is trapped in a lagoon – much like 1983’s Jaws 3-D and so on. In that way, there is something quite generic about Killer Whale.
Away from the filmmaking itself, it has to be said that this film has an uncomfortable aspect that is hard to deny. Throughout, it is made clear not only that the characters oppose the captivity of orcas but also that Ceto’s aggression results solely from being locked up and used by humans. Whilst it is great that the characters make it clear that the real bad guys are humans, not orcas, there is an irony in adamantly stating this whilst simultaneously using orcas as entertainment for a Horror film. The film feels like it is contradicting itself.
Another element that does not sit particularly well is naming the killer whale Ceto. This feels uncomfortably similar to Keto, the real-life killer whale who was involved in a fatal incident with a trainer at a sealife attraction.
Overall, whilst one can appreciate that Brechin tried to make a creature feature that was not just another shark movie, there is nothing new or original enough to make Killer Whale stand out. Taking into account some of the dubious ethics as well and Killer Whale is not particularly worth getting into the water for. That is why Cryptic Rock gives it 2 out of 5 stars.
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