By Alison Stateman
From one Avenger to another… Chris Hemsworth (Thor) has passed the hosting baton to Anthony Mackie (Captain America), who will helm the newest installment of the hit Shark Beach franchise—as announced by National Geographic at the 2024 Winter Television Critics Association (TCA) Press Tour today.
Shark Beach With Anthony Mackie will kick off the fan-favorite summer viewing event SHARKFEST, which celebrates the captivating science and stunning cinematic visuals of the apex predators. The first installment, Shark Beach With Chris Hemsworth, followed the global superstar as he embarked on a personal mission to investigate how we can live more harmoniously with sharks.
The new installment follows award-winning actor Mackie in his hometown of New Orleans, where he grew up boating and angling and still practices the sport to date, a passion he now shares with his four sons.
Throughout the one-hour documentary special, Mackie is on a personal mission to keep the peace between coastal communities and sharks. Diving fin-first, he comes face-to-face with the ocean’s apex predators, swimming with several enormous sandbar and silky sharks and tagging a formidable 7-foot bull shark.
“Anthony Mackie absolutely blew our minds with his enthusiasm and curiosity throughout the filming of this new installment of Shark Beach,” said Janet Han Vissering, senior vice president, Development and Production, National Geographic. “We’re so honored to be able to work with him and Nutopia on a passion project that brings him back home and underscores the importance of maintaining balance with nature so that humans and animals can continue to coexist on this beautiful planet.”
Shark Beach With Anthony Mackie is produced in partnership with Nutopia. For Nutopia, Arif Nurmohamed, Nicola Moody, and Jane Root serve as executive producers, and Geoff Daniels serves as executive vice president, Unscripted. The one-hour special is directed by Matt Kay. For National Geographic, Tracy Rudolph Jackson serves as executive producer; Janet Vissering is senior vice president of Development and Production; and Tom McDonald is executive vice president of Global Factual and Unscripted Content.
