Night Swim and 10 more hot, wet horror movies

We’re hot, we’re sweaty, and we’re not going to take it anymore! It’s time to stay inside with the air con on, and indulge in some “Don’t go near the water” drama. We’ve rounded up our favourite sick-of-summer movies featuring monsters, sharks, crocodiles, killers, and more. And before we head out for open water, we’re going to dip our toes in the deep end, with a movie that’ll bring a whole new terror to your very own swimming pool – Night Swim.

Night Swim

The Waller family are thrilled when they close the deal on a new house, complete with swimming pool. Dad Ray (Wyatt Russell) – a pro baseball player whose career has been cut short by illness – is especially pleased with how therapeutic he finds it being in the water. And mom Eve (Kerry Condon) is ready to enjoy a relaxing late night swim after their kids Izzy (Amelie Hoeferle) and Elliot (Gavin Warren) have worn off all their energy playing Marco Polo. Now this pool comes with some extra special features including…

• Spring-fed waters from an ancient well
• The ghost of Rebecca Summers (Ayazhan Dalabayeva)
• Possible healing properties 
• Something the cat finds fascinating
• Something that finds the cat fascinating
• The feeling that you’re never alone in the water
• Mystery coins
• Grey mist
• And a demon that looks like Danny DeVito covered in goo!

But it’s so cool and placid you won’t be able to leave. Go on, try it. Try leaving. And if the kids claim to see something scary in the water, ignore the little cowards. Just enjoy your swim, man. Throw a pool party. 

10 more hot, wet horror movies

Meg 2: The Trench

Jonas Taylor (Jason Statham) fights environmental crime while assisting his brother-in-law Jiuming’s (Wu Jing) expedition aboard the Mana One, whose scientists are studying no-longer extinct megalodon sharks in the depths of the Mariana Trench. When Haqui, the shark that Jiuming raised, escapes, she chases the Mana One submarine crew down into the Trench where they find more megalodons who’re responding to Haqui’s mating call. They also run into an illegal deep sea mining operation that’s created a rift, allowing even more horrifying creatures to escape to the surface – including a giant octopus that’s going to fight a helicopter for our amusement. 

The Black Demon

Nixon Oil company inspector Paul Sturges (Josh Lucas) takes his family along when he’s sent to inspect the Diamante offshore oil rig in Baja, California. But their fun getaway gets off to a bad start when the locals treat them with hostility and chases the family to the rig, which is manned by only two remaining workers and one chihuahua – whose fate we all know we’re going to care a lot more about than any of the human cast. Then a massive megalodon that rig workers have nicknamed the Black Demon shows up and destroys their boat, stranding them on the rig with the environmental catastrophe that Nixon Oil has created … and a whole lot of dismembered bodies in the water because people just keep falling in thanks to all that slippery oil. 

Jaws

Every movie buff who ever quipped “We’re going to need a bigger boat” is giving a nod to Steven Spielberg’s great, big shark movie, which set the big-idea blockbuster movie trend in motion back in 1975. This is also one of the templates for later films in which scientists advise a correct course of action, only for corpses to pile up when politicians and businesses ignore them in favour of making money. If you saw this one too young, chances are it made you afraid to even get into the swimming pool one summer. And it’ll still spook you now, despite its Muppety-looking practical effects shark, “Bruce”. 

Jaws 2

“Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water…”. Four years after the original shark attacks on Amity Island, another great white starts cruising the coast. While a series of disappearances have the townsfolk scratching their heads, Jaws survivor Police Chief Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) is the first to suspect that sharks are to blame. But the Amity Town Council officials fire him when he tries to raise the alarm, leaving him to go solo when a group of teens, including his two sons, run foul of the shark while out sailing. We have sharks attacking helicopters, waterskiers, divers, orcas, catamarans and anything that moves or screams. Go, sharks, go!

Jaws 3

“It lives to kill. A mindless eating machine”. Just as the SeaWorld amusement park in Florida is about to open its doors to the public, a baby great white shark slips in and starts running amok, killing waterskiers and park employees. But capturing the delinquent in mid-feast won’t solve the problem, because somewhere out there in the deep blue sea its mommy is wondering why it hasn’t come home. And she’s rolling up her proverbial shark sleeves as she sets off to find her baby … and have some snacks to keep up her strength. That’s bad news for the park’s chief engineer, Michael Brody (Dennis Quaid) and his little brother Sean (John Putch). Yes, Martin Brody’s sons. PS: This was originally released in cinemas as a 3D movie.

Jaws: The Revenge

“This time it’s personal!”. Ignoring the events of Jaws 3, this final film in the Jaws franchise returns to Amity Island where a widowed Ellen Brody (Lorraine Gary) mourns the early death of her husband Martin, blaming sharks for driving him to an early grave. When Sean Brody (Mitchell Anderson), who has stepped into Martin’s shoes as a local policeman, is attacked, Ellen insists that the sharks are out for revenge, so Michael Brody (Lance Guest), who’s now a marine biologist, invites his clearly cuckoo mom to come relax in the Bahamas, where he’s spending most of his time at sea. First of all, really, Michael? Second of all, Ellen can’t stop, won’t stop, as she sets off to take down these sharks with a taste for Brody flesh. And is that Michael Caine on a plane fighting a shark? Why, yes it is.

The Flood

Hordes of hungry gators are ready to chomp, chomp, chomp as a hurricane hits Louisiana and washes them out of the swap and onto the streets. Pray, who will they chomp? First on the menu is a group of prison guards with dangerous inmates including Russell Cody (Casper van Dien) who’re in transit and have to stop at a small Sheriff's Department's holding cells to shelter from the storm. As the waters rise and the alligators swim in, they’d better hope the bars are close together to keep out the biggest and hungriest. Play nicely in the water now, or the prehistoric horrors will getcha. 

Crawl

University of Florida swimmer Haley Keller (Kaya Scodelario) and her estranged father Dave (Barry Pepper) wind up stranded together at the family’s old home in Coral Lake after Haley defies hurricane evacuation orders to go looking for Dave with their dog, Sugar, and finds him passed out in the crawl space under their house. But they’re not alone! With them are some hungry, hungry alligators with a taste for human flesh. In an effort to survive, Haley swims through a storm water drain, flooded streets and their rapidly submerging house, which is in the path of the flood as the local levee breaks. Release the gators!

River Wild

Ready for a family white water rafting adventure you’ll never forget? Forget sharks and crocs, the most dangerous beast in the open water is man. Estranged brother and sister Gray (Taran Killam) and Joey Reese (Leighton Meester) must set aside their differences and save the tourists who’ve joined them and their childhood friend Tervor (Adam Brody) for a trip down a raging river. Because someone aboard is a killer with a must-die list, as they set off to bury their past in a series of moist and tragic “accidents”.

The Tank

Pet shop owning couple Ben (Matt Whelan) and Jules (Luciane Buchanan) have no idea what they’re in for when they take their daughter Reia (Zara Nausbaum) with them to look over an abandoned coastal property that Ben has just inherited from his “crazy” late mother The property hides a massive underground rainwater tank, where Matt unwittingly disturbs the creepy residents, dropping the family into an Alien-like horror story in the house above the water, as the creatures come searching for snacks. Switch your brain to cruise mode, and enjoy the superb monster-making practical effects courtesy of New Zealand’s Weta Workshop. 

Deep Blue Sea

In an underwater ocean facility that would have a James Bond villain waving fistfulls of cash, a team of scientists is conducting Alzheimer's research by experimenting on mako sharks. But scientist Dr McCallister (Saffron Burrows) has made them super-smart. And when one escapes, her corporate sponsors send a team to investigate including big boss Russell Franklin (Samuel L Jackson) and shark wrangler Carter (Thomas Jane). Soon, everyone, including hapless cook “Preacher” Dudley (LL Cool J) is fighting for their lives as the facility becomes a watery death maze filled with sharks who’re determined to snap their way to freedom. You’ll never look at motivational speeches quite the same way again. 

Dangerous Waters

We get bad vibes almost instantly when Rose (Odeya Rush) meets her mom Alba’s (Saffron Burrows) rich new boyfriend, Derek (Eric Dane) the ex-cop, who’s invited them both aboard his yacht for a sailing trip to the Bahamas. Maybe it’s the movie poster. Maybe it’s stranger danger. Alas, during the trip a group of strange men led by The Captain (Ray Liotta, who died while working on this film) attack the boat. And as Rose has to take the helm to get the survivors to safety, Derek slowly lets his mask slip. If you love a final girl film but want it hot and wet, hop aboard for the adventure!