When you were younger, SeaWorld might have seemed like a magical place. They have a variety of aquatic species that perform jaw-dropping stunts with a team of trainers. A trademark animal for the park has always been the killer whale, but there is a shocking truth behind the containment of these animals. The Blackfish movie is a popular trending documentary that exposes a dark side of SeaWorld corruption by revealing a sobering truth.

Blackfish Documentary

The documentary is a brilliantly filmed piece of investigative journalism that exposes a side of SeaWorld corruption that you may be surprise exists. The majority of the film is narrated by actual retired trainers that are stepping forward to expose their former place of employment. There are many different stories detailing the containment of animals but the main focus of the film is on a whale named Tilikum.

Tilikum is a killer whale that has been held responsible for the death of three different people since being contained. One of the worst things is that SeaWorld bought the whale from a different park even after they found out it had killed a trainer. Then they neglected to tell their own trainers that the whale had killed, which eventually lead to one of their own lead trainers being murdered.

What Makes the Whales Violent?

One point that the Blackfish movie covers is the fact that Tilikum isn’t the only killer whale to attack trainers. Hundreds of people have been attacked by killer whales in the past. The strange thing is that a human has never been attacked by one in nature, only at the parks that we hold them in.

Killer whales are an incredibly intelligent animal with a brain that easily doubles ours in size. They feel a wide range of emotions and have a strict hierarchical system in nature. The mental damage done to whales in captivity begins with their capture. They are rounded up by a team of boats and the youngest ones are taken from their mothers. Even the people who did the capturing appear in the documentary saying that it was one of the cruelest regrets they have.

After they are stripped of a healthy development, the whales are kept in small dark containment cages at night for their own “protection”. In reality, the whales are used to traveling over endless miles of sea every day. The fact that they are contained to a small fish tank has notable mental effects on them.

Is Anything Being Done About SeaWorld Corruption?

The Blackfish movie points out that there have now been laws passed forbidding the trainers from being with killer whales without a protective barrier. Sadly, there haven’t been any laws that protect the whales. When they take the whales from different areas and jam them together, they often clash and fight each other constantly. This violence combined with the unnatural containment ends up hurting the mental health of the animals.

Sure the shows that SeaWorld has are breathtaking and fun to watch but at what cost? They are containing an amazing species and driving them to violent behavior that we don’t even see in nature. I’ll be honest, at first I wasn’t incredibly interested with the topic of SeaWorld corruption. After someone recommended I watch the Blackfish movie, that all changed. It is a truly gripping documentary that gives you insight on not only killer whales, but the containment of animals in general. If you haven’t seen it yet, definitely consider viewing this Netflix hit in the near future.

What do you think about the rampant corruption in SeaWorld? Have you seen the Blackfish documentary? Let us know with a comment below!

Image Credits: Icholakov/BigStock.com

Darlene Strand

Creation intended every living thing to be ‘free’ but ‘man kind’ is selfish, exploiting the talents of the ‘whales’ , ‘dolphins’, and ‘seals’ and other animals, if they have talent and they can make money! I had the opportunity to see ‘Shamu’, at the end of the 60s at Sea World. The shows were awesome!
Lucy Peixoto

I have seen Blackfish, Read John Hargrove’s Book and David Kirby’s Book. Sea world is nothing more than an evil corporation who has a cult like control over its employees, thinks they are above the Law and think they can do and say anything and that there will never be any consequences to them. It is sickening how Sea world deliberately twists and distorts marine science to manipulate an unsuspecting and uneducated public just so they can keep on making money. Sea world is losing control, losing credibility, losing money, losing investors, losing business partners. Sea world pays employees to infiltrate and spy on PETA and Whale organizations who are working successfully to end captivity of whales and Dolphins. Seaworld pays unemployed men and women $22.00 an hour through a temp agency to protest against anti-captivity protesters. Seaworld pays thier Website ‘Awesome Ocean’ to attack anyone who criticizes them. They spend $Millions on Lawyers desperately trying to escape being sued and pay politicians to be on their board of directors trying to control everything. Sea world pays Veterinarians to lie to the public for them. Sea world is a corrupt, unethical, immoral company who cares for nothing and no one except themselves and the money. CEO of Blackstone group didn’t care at all about Dawn Brancheau being mauled to death in front of hundreds of men, women and children. He said it was her mistake. His managers cover up for him. Don’t go to Sea world. And write to the California Coastal Commission to deny the permit for Sea world to build bigger tanks. Write to your California senators and demand that they pass Orca Welfare And safety Act into Law. That way the Orcas and dolphins can be released into sea pens.