Back in 2023, we heard that Gene Simmons of the rock band Kiss would be launching a new production company with Gary Hamilton (so the company is appropriately called Simmons/Hamilton Productions), and the first project they had given the greenlight was a shark thriller called Deep Water – with Deep Blue Sea director Renny Harlin attached to take the helm of the film! That film has since made its way through production, and eight months ago, we learned that Magenta Light Studios, the distributor behind last year’s Strange Darling, has acquired the domestic rights to Deep Water, with plans to give it a theatrical release. Now, thanks to The Wrap, we know exactly when that theatrical release is going to happen: May 1, 2026.
Scripted by Pete Bridges and John Kim, Deep Water centers on an eclectic group of international passengers whose plane, en route from Los Angeles to Shanghai, is forced to make an emergency landing in shark-infested waters. The terrified group is forced to work together and overcome their differences if they hope to escape their sinking plane and the frenzy of sharks drawn to the wreckage.
The film stars Aaron Eckhart of Harlin’s The Bricklayer, Sir Ben Kingsley (Gandhi), Molly Wright (Netflix’s True Spirit), Angus Sampson (Mad Max: Fury Road), Kelly Gale (Plane), singer and actor Li Wenhan, who is a member of the Chinese-Korean K-Pop group UNIQ, and Nashi (Creation of the Gods I: Kingdom of Storms).
Arclight Films’ Ying Ye, Gabba Post’s Neal Kingston, Aristos Films’ Grant Bradley and Dale Bradley, and Nostromo Pictures’ Adrian Guerra and Xavier Parache produced the film, while Brian Beckmann and Ryan Hamilton from Arclight Films serve as executive producers alongside Vladimir Artemenko from Top Film Distribution, as well as Rob Van Norden and Johanna Harlin. Filming took place in New Zealand and Spain, wrapping at the end of 2023.
Magenta Light Studios’ Bob Yari has said that Deep Water “does an incredible job of bringing adventure, suspense and intensity to the screen including one of the most nerve-wracking plane crash scenes ever witnessed on film. It is the kind of movie that is made for the big screen and we are excited to bring it to audiences in theaters this year.“ Harlin added, “Deep Water represents the kind of movie I’ve dreamed of making since I grew up loving the ’70s disaster movies. Spectacular action and unforgettable characters who didn’t leave a dry eye in the movie theater. Bob Yari and his Magenta Light team have been the biggest supporters of this project since the beginning, and I’m proud to have a wide theatrical release for a movie that deserves to be seen and heard on the biggest possible number of screens across the country.“
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