The poster for "Water Park Shark" has arrived, and with it comes confirmation that Anthony C. Ferrante is firmly back in the shark attack business. Ferrante has continued to play around in the shark attack genre ever since "Sharknado," and he is back now with the new film "Water Park Shark." The project signals another chapter in a directing career that has stayed remarkably close to the creature-feature lane.
It was over ten years ago that Ferrante introduced the world to "Sharknado," a viral phenomenon that launched a franchise. What followed was not a pivot toward prestige cinema but a sustained commitment to genre filmmaking that found real audiences on streaming platforms.
Ferrante was the director behind the over-the-top shark action of "Sharknado," and when that movie turned out to be a pop culture sensation, he returned to direct all five of the increasingly over-the-top sequels, including "Sharknado 2: The Second One," "Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No!," "Sharknado 4: The 4th Awakens," "Sharknado 5: Global Swarming," and "The Last Sharknado: It's About Time."
His post-franchise output has been equally prolific. The franchise wrapped in 2018, and five years later, Ferrante directed his seventh shark movie, an Asylum production called "Blind Waters," released through the Tubi streaming service. That was followed by "Great White Waters," released as a Tubi Original on July 4, 2025.
"Water Park Shark" arrives as the latest entry in that streak. When Great White Sharks storm a Cape Cod water park, a washed-up football star-turned-lifeguard and his ex-girlfriend police chief must uncover the shocking secret drawing in the ocean's biggest predators before it's too late. The screenplay was written by Al Kratina, with production handled by Narrative Pictures.
David Chokachi and Chelsea Gilson star in the film, which is set to be screened as part of the upcoming Shark Con in Tampa, Florida, on Saturday, July 18, 2026. That premiere setting is its own kind of cultural shorthand. Shark Con is an event built around exactly the kind of enthusiastic, self-aware fandom that elevated "Sharknado" from a cable curiosity into a genuine phenomenon.
The cast also includes Matthew Dame, Kacie Patricia, Michael Shaun Sandy, Snow Feng, Hector Becerra, Brigdon York, Rob Eubanks, Camilla Bastos, and Giovanna McMaster. A trailer is expected to follow the poster's release in the near term.
What Ferrante has built over two decades is something specific and not easy to replicate: a reliable pipeline of high-concept, low-barrier genre entertainment that connects directly with its intended audience. Ferrante, who used to write for Fangoria magazine, has directed twenty feature films over the course of his career. That breadth matters. It positions "Water Park Shark" not as a novelty throwback but as a logical continuation of a genre practice with its own internal consistency.
The film's Cape Cod setting also quietly nods toward a longer cinematic lineage. Locating great white sharks off the Massachusetts coast is a choice that carries obvious cultural weight, even if the film's intent is clearly spectacle rather than homage. Ferrante has never pretended otherwise, and that honesty with the audience is arguably what keeps his work findable.
Whether "Water Park Shark" travels beyond its Shark Con premiere to a streaming platform remains to be announced. Given Ferrante's recent track record with Tubi, a digital release targeting summer audiences seems the most likely trajectory.
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