Shark Week Is Our Favorite Thing About Summer

By: Discovery

Get ready for the best summer yet. This year, SHARK WEEK starts on July 11 with more jawsome shows than ever before on Discovery and discovery+.

May 27, 2021

SHARK WEEK is here for its 33rd summer of big sharks and even bigger bites. Starting July 11 and continuing through July 18th you can see more hours of shark programming than ever before on Discovery and discovery+.

The Best Thing About Summer

Shark Week | The Best Thing About Summer 00:29

Get ready for the best summer yet. Starting July 11 and continuing through July 18th you can see more hours of shark programming than ever before on Discovery and discovery+.

The Best Thing About Summer

Leading up to SHARK WEEK, dive into a shark movie festival across Discovery platforms. SHARK WEEK 2021’s jawesome lineup will deliver all-new groundbreaking shark stories revealing remarkable insights into the mysterious world of these magnificent creatures. This year will include Discovery’s first-ever shark competitive docu-series, SHARK ACADEMY and the return of shark themed episodes of JOSH GATES TONIGHT. In addition, celebrities including William Shatner, Tiffany Haddish, Brad Paisley, the cast of Jackass, and many others will be diving into the water for extraordinary shark adventures.

Science & Conservation Matter

Discovery Channel continues to work with nearly two dozen of the world’s most respected marine biologists and science institutions. SHARK WEEK 2021 will once again deliver incredible brand-new, innovative shark research and compelling insight on some of the most remarkable shark species in the world including the first in utero camera tag in a pregnant Tiger shark, a potentially new Great White mating behavior, and the discovery of an elusive pupping ground.

Oceana and Discovery continue their longstanding partnership to help protect sharks, which are threatened by a global shark fin trade that includes fins from as many as 73 million sharks each year. Additionally, Discovery is partnering with Beneath The Waves, an ocean NGO using cutting-edge science to advance scientific discovery and catalyze ocean policy, with initiatives focusing on the conservation of biodiversity and highly migratory species such as sharks.

Join the Conversation

Discovery will leave no shark fan behind, bringing the SHARK WEEK experience to viewers across digital and social media platforms. This year, the fully immersive experience continues with fin-tastic new AR filters for Instagram, Snapchat, and Facebook, and 7 nights of livestreams on TikTok. Viewers watching live will enjoy the first ever JAWscers hosted by Bob the Shark, an interactive experience that will allow fans to vote on their favorite Shark Week moments of all time.

In addition to watching SHARK WEEK 2021 on Discovery, viewers can join the conversation on social media using #SHARKWEEK, and follow Discovery Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and TikTok for more updates.

Stream What You Love

Your favorite Shark Week shows and exclusive originals, all in one place.

Next Up

There’s a Lot You Don’t Know About Sharks

But in the meantime, here are some fin-tastic facts you probably didn’t know about sharks.

Shark Week: The Podcast - What is the Status of Sharks in our Oceans?

In this season’s final episode, Luke welcomes Emmy-winning filmmaker and conservationist Shawn Heinrichs to discuss the state of sharks in the ocean. They go over how both legal and illegal fishing operations are decimating the ocean’s wildlife, what it’s like to have a hit put out on you for exposing criminal enterprises to the world, and whether or not NOAA’s data on “sustainable” fishing can really be trusted.

Shark Week: The Podcast - Shipwrecked & Surrounded by Sharks

This week, we do things a little differently, as Shark Week’s Luke Tipple invites Adventure Aaron into the podcast studio to talk about his incredible near-death experience on the open water. Adventure Aaron gets into what it takes to circumnavigate the world in an ocean rowboat, what it’s like to stare eye-to-eye with an oceanic white tip that probably wants you for lunch, and everything else that happened to him when his boat was capsized, and he was lost by himself at sea.

Shark Week: The Podcast - How Smart Are Sharks?

The discussion turns this week to sharks’ intelligence, and how it varies among species. Host Luke Tipple is joined by Dr. Tristan Guttridge, a behavioral ecologist and veteran of Shark Week whose research has tackled the social smarts, and even personalities, of different kinds of sharks. He sheds light on why we shouldn’t just think of them as dumb fish with rows of razor-sharp teeth. And at the end, our researcher Sierra Kehoe tells us about shark hypnosis.

Shark Week: The Podcast - How Shark Fishing Funds Human Trafficking

Luke Tipple is joined by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author of the Outlaw Ocean Ian Urbina, who has dedicated his life to chronicling crime on the high seas. They discuss the state of our world’s oceans, how nearly 20% of your seafood was likely caught illegally, and the surprising link between modern slavery and the killing of sharks.

Shark Week: The Podcast - Lights! Camera! TEETH! Making Shark Docs

Shark Week’s Luke Tipple is joined by longtime filmmaker and Emmy-award-winner Andy Casagrande. He’s filmed and appeared in dozens of shark documentaries, and might just be the most prolific shark cinematographer in history. He talks with Luke about his career, the contentious term “shark porn,” and the future of the industry. And at the end, our researcher Sierra talks about the unprecedented ways that sharks are currently endangered.

Shark Week: The Podcast - Do Scientists Need to Kill Sharks?

Host Luke Tipple welcomes two guests to discuss how researchers can kill sharks in the name of science – and whether they need to at all. The first is Dr. Neil Hammerschlag, shark researcher and founder of Atlantic Shark Expeditions, and an expert on data-gathering in the field. He’s followed by explorer Fred Buyle, a world-record-breaking freediver whose innovative methods of shark tagging are explored. Plus, our researcher Sierra tells us about how a 50-year study changed our understanding of tiger sharks – and much of the work wasn’t even done by scientists.

Shark Week: The Podcast - How Many Sharks Are Yet to Be Discovered?

Luke Tipple is joined by Shark Week host and all-around adventurer Forrest Galante. They discuss his upcoming special Alien Sharks: South Africa, Forrest’s remarkable talent for finding creatures once believed to be extinct, and how many shark species may still be unknown. Then, our researcher Sierra stops by to tell us about the world’s most prehistoric shark.

Shark Week: The Podcast - Undiscovered Sharks and the State of the Ocean

Luke Tipple invites “The Lost Shark Guy,” Dr. Dave Ebert, who is personally responsible for finding dozens of shark species that were either previously unknown to science or thought to be extinct. He and Luke discuss why shark populations are a direct indicator of how healthy the ocean is, how to find undiscovered sharks, and why diversity in sharks is essential for marine life.

Shark Week: The Podcast - How To Have A Career in Shark Science

Shark Week’s Luke Tipple tackles the question “How can I work with sharks?” alongside two experts in the field – and their answers are not always the obvious ones. Luke is joined first by Kelly Link, Associate Curator of the Georgia Aquarium who talks about what it’s like to be an aquarist, how it differs from field work, and how to get yourself noticed. The second guest is Dr. Neil Hammerschlag who goes into detail on what it takes to become a prominent scientist, and what other paths you can take if a PhD isn’t for you. And at the end, researcher Sierra stops by to tell us about the world’s smallest shark.

Related To: