The Top 10 Best Fish Man Movies

5. Sweetheart 

Blumhouse’s contribution to this list of Fish Man movies is a little known film that was released at Sundance in 2019. It gained notoriety when Netflix picked it up and added it to their streaming library. Sweetheart begins with a woman, apparently the sole survivor of a shipwreck, washing up on a deserted island (Kiersey Clemons). Just as despair starts to set in a new threat reveals itself from the depths of the ocean in the form of a monstrous humanoid devouring anything with the poor fortune of coming to its island. Desperate to escape before the same fate as the former visitors to the tropical paradise, she is ecstatic to see more survivors arrive in a raft. They don’t believe her stories of a monster though until the beast reveals itself in full and makes it clear that the ocean is its domain. With no other choice, Clemons is forced into a life or death confrontation with the ocean’s ultimate apex predator.  

4. Aquaman

Technically, the Atlantians qualify as aquatic humanoids. However, it feels like they would be a bit of a disappointing addition to this list of Fish Man movies. Luckily, the DCEU film gave us another “species” of aquatic humanoids that are perfect for this list. Just like in Underwater, these monsters live deep in the Mariana Trench, hidden from mankind for centuries. Global warming and pollution though have caused them to rise from the murky depths in order to defend their home the only way they know how: with claws and teeth. Not only are these creatures terrifying with overwhelming numbers, but what we’ve seen so far seems to only be the “foot soldiers” of the first wave. What else lurks deep within the trench? We’re going to have to wait for the spin-off film, appropriately titled The Trench, to find out. However, between them and the Atlantians, Aquaman definitely deserves a spot among these other Fish Man movies.

3. Creature from the Black Lagoon 

It goes without saying that the original Creature from the Black Lagoon was going to earn a spot on this list of Fish Man movies. It was just a matter of which one. While I have a lot of respect for it being the first to present an iconic aquatic humanoid on the big-screen, I will argue that it isn’t the best anymore. That doesn’t stop it from still earning a respectable ranking even after all these years. When a group of scientists in the Amazon discovers fossilized evidence of a webbed hand, they suspect it to be the missing link between life living beneath the sea and emerging on land. What they don’t expect is for the species to still be alive and well in the river. The titular Creature emerges in hopes of whisking a new mate off her feet, but it’s safe to say that he’s simply not her type. Apparently, Gillmen don’t understand that “no means no”, and he’s hunted down by the scientist before he can become a Gilldaddy. 

2. Hellboy and Hellboy: The Golden Army 

Of all the Fish Man movies I’ve seen over the years, Abe Sapien remains my favorite character of all. Unlike the others on this list, Abe is hardly a monster. In fact, he’s an empath, which means he’s capable of knowing and feeling every emotion around him. This intimate understanding the inner natures of both man and monster has allowed him to elevate beyond both. An intellectual with a thirst for knowledge, Abe has put his skills and expertise to good use working with the forces of the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense (BPRD) helping to keep the world safe from man and monster alike. While he might not be as good in a brawl as his partner, Abe’s ability to connect with other living creatures has allowed him to smooth over plenty of fights before they even start. It also makes it impossible for him to do the wrong thing at the end of the day, making him the soul of the BPRD.

1. The Shape of Water

Apparently, Guillermo del Toro wasn’t done with Fish Man movies after Hellboy and Hellboy II: The Golden Army. He returned to the original concept of the Gillman but added his special brand of dark fantasy to it. The film is set in the 1960s, a time when G-Men had flat-top haircuts, horn-rimmed glasses, and an intolerance for anything unAmerican (AKA anything not white, Christian, or capitalist). Well, the Gillman happens to be none of those things, so you can understand why the government thought it best to lock him up in a lab. That begs the question of who the real monster is in the movie, but luckily, The Shape of Water answers that very question with the incorporation of a blossoming romance between a mute cleaning woman (Sally Hopkins) and the creature (Doug Jones). Sure, it’s kind of weird and I have a couple of anatomy questions, but pushing all that aside, it’s a beautiful film about the very core of what it is to love and be loved. Perhaps, Fish Men really aren’t that monstrous after all.

Honorable Mention: The Monster Squad

I’ve mentioned The Monster Squad on almost every one of my classic movie monster top 10 lists. That’s because even to this day it still has some of the best big-screen adaptations of these characters I’ve ever seen. Sure, the creature effects might be a little dated, but the aesthetics still stand up. This is especially true with their version of the Gillman, who keeps the look and feel of the original while looking more menacing than ever. The Monster Squad might not have done much with this monster, but the scenes he’s in are still really cool even after all these years. Nostalgia might be responsible for my unwavering love for this film, but even after looking over all these other Fish Man movies, I still feel like it deserves an honorable mention.

Dishonorable Mention: Waterworld

Researching Fish-Man movies took me to some dark places. Of course, I found all the films that earned a spot on the list above, but I was also reminded of some terrible aquatic humanoids that have appeared in movies over the years. When it came to a dishonorable mention, I found myself torn between the notorious Gungans from Star Wars and Kevin Costner’s whatever the hell he was in Waterworld. I ended up deciding on Costner, since his Fish Man not only had gills and webbed digits but also regularly drank his own piss (filtered, but still…). To this day, Waterworld remains one of the most ambitious disasters to ever appear on the big screen, and it might seem like I’m beating a dead horse, but I’m still going to give it a dishonorable mention for the lack of originality when it came to it’s Fish Man. 

Those are the best Fish Man movies I’ve ever seen. There might be some more out there lurking in the depths, and if you know of any especially good ones that I missed, I encourage you to leave me a comment below. As always, I’ll be updating this list as more Fish Man movies come ashore and make their way to the big screen. So, be sure to check back from time to time in order to see how the rankings might change. Until next time, remember to always have a swim buddy, and please don’t feed the Fish Men.