Synopsis

A vacationing couple joins a scuba-diving excursion in the Bahamas, but a counting mistake leaves them stranded in the open sea after the boat departs. With no land in sight and their supplies running out, they struggle to stay together and remain afloat while reef sharks circle beneath them. Their fight for survival becomes increasingly desperate as rescue fails to appear.

Factoids & Trivia

• The film was loosely inspired by the 1998 disappearance of Australian scuba divers Tom and Eileen Lonergan, though the movie changes the setting and fictionalizes the couple's fate.

• Chris Kentis and Laura Lau financed the production themselves. Both were experienced scuba divers, which helped them shape the story around diving procedures and the realities of being stranded at sea.

• The filmmakers used live reef sharks rather than mechanical props or computer-generated animals. The actors were protected by chain-mail garments worn beneath their wetsuits and were tethered to the boat.

• Shot on handheld high-definition video, the movie uses a deliberately rough, documentary-like visual style. The inexpensive format also allowed the filmmakers to react quickly when weather, sharks, or other sea life appeared.

• A shark handler attracted the animals with chum while the cast filmed in the surrounding water. The production reportedly spent only a small fraction of a conventional studio thriller's budget.

• Lions Gate acquired the distribution rights for $2.5 million after the film screened at the 2004 Sundance Film Festival. The independent production eventually earned more than $55 million worldwide.

• The film's success helped revive interest in stripped-down survival thrillers and led to two later movies being marketed as part of the *Open Water* series, although neither continues the original story.