King Shark is a

supervillain A supervillain or supercriminal is a variant of the villainous stock character that is commonly found in American comic books, usually possessing superhuman abilities. A supervillain is the antithesis of a superhero. Supervillains are oft ...

appearing in

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

s published by

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

. The character, also known as Nanaue, was created by writer

Karl Kesel Karl Kesel (born January 7, 1959, Victor, New York) is an American comics writer and inker whose works have primarily been under contract for DC Comics. He is a member of Periscope Studio and is best known for his collaborations with fellow artis ...

and artist

Tom Grummett Thomas Grummett (born 1959) is a Canadian comic book artist and penciller. He is best known for his work as penciller on titles such as '' The New Titans'', '' The Adventures of Superman'', ''Superboy'', ''Power Company'', '' Robin'', ''New Thun ...

. King Shark's first key appearance was in '' Superboy'' #0 (October 1994) as a cameo before making his first full appearance in ''Superboy'' #9 (November 1994). The character serves as an adversary to Aquaman,

The Flash The Flash (or simply Flash) is the name of several superheroes appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Gardner Fox and artist Harry Lampert, the original Flash first appeared in ''Flash Comics'' #1 (cover date ...

, and Superboy. The character has been adapted from the comics into various forms of media, including television series, feature films, and video games. King Shark made his live-action debut in the television series ''

'', voiced by David Hayter while Dan Payne portrayed his human form. In the DC Extended Universe, King Shark was voiced by actor

Sylvester Stallone Sylvester Enzio Stallone (; born Michael Sylvester Gardenzio Stallone, ) is an American actor and filmmaker. After his beginnings as a struggling actor for a number of years upon arriving to New York City in 1969 and later Hollywood in 1974, h ...

and

motion capture Motion capture (sometimes referred as mo-cap or mocap, for short) is the process of recording the movement of objects or people. It is used in military, entertainment, sports, medical applications, and for validation of computer vision and robo ...

d by

Steve Agee Steven Douglas Agee (; born February 26, 1969) is an American comedian, actor, writer and musician, known for roles including Steve Myron on the Comedy Central series ''The Sarah Silverman Program'' and as John Economos in the 2021 superhero fil ...

in the film '' The Suicide Squad'' (2021).

Fictional character biography

Born in

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

, Nanaue is a

humanoid A humanoid (; from English ''human'' and ''-oid'' "resembling") is a non-human entity with human form or characteristics. The earliest recorded use of the term, in 1870, referred to indigenous peoples in areas colonized by Europeans. By the 20t ...

shark Sharks are a group of elasmobranch fish characterized by a cartilaginous skeleton, five to seven gill slits on the sides of the head, and pectoral fins that are not fused to the head. Modern sharks are classified within the clade Selachimo ...

. His father is "The King of All Sharks"—also known as the Shark God. Originally there were some doubts surrounding his origins, as other characters, such as special agent Sam Makoa, dismissed his origins as superstition and referred to Nanaue as a "savage

mutation In biology, a mutation is an alteration in the nucleic acid sequence of the genome of an organism, virus, or extrachromosomal DNA. Viral genomes contain either DNA or RNA. Mutations result from errors during DNA or viral replication, mi ...

" and it was also implied that he was one of the "Wild Men", evolved animals based on those in '' Kamandi: The Last Boy on Earth'', but the now-ended '' Aquaman: Sword of Atlantis'' series put an end to the controversy by firmly establishing him as the Shark God's son. King Shark was responsible for a number of missing persons several years before Superboy arrived in Hawaii. Sam Makoa was responsible for bringing him in and bore the scars to prove it. King Shark is freed by the Silicon Dragons, who plan on hiring him. Nanaue is not interested, and kills his liberators before heading to his mother's house. His mother allows him to bite her arm off to feed. Superboy managed to take him down with his heat vision. When Superboy and Makoa were assigned to the Suicide Squad to destroy the Silicon Dragons, King Shark was forced to help. An explosive belt was strapped to his waist, set to detonate if anything happened to Makoa. Other members of the Squad included

Knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...

and Squad veterans Deadshot and Captain Boomerang. Nanaue was a crazed fighting machine, shredding legions of the Dragons (and killing Sidearm too, when he betrays the team). Despite the belt detonating, King Shark survived the blast and the destruction of the lair. After a research team sent to investigate the lair's remains went missing, King Shark was initially suspected, but it turned out to be Black Manta. King Shark fought Superboy, but he was defeated and driven out to sea. King Shark later turned up in the Wild Lands and fought Superboy and his allies. After a fierce battle, he was assumed killed, but no body was ever recovered. He joined

Manchester Black Manchester Black is a fictional character in American comic books published by DC Comics, in particular those featuring Superman. He was created by Joe Kelly and Doug Mahnke in ''Action Comics'' #775 (March 2001). Introduced as an antihero, the ch ...

's Legion of Villains in the "Ending Battle". He later turned up in

Metropolis A metropolis () is a large city or conurbation which is a significant economic, political, and cultural center for a country or region, and an important hub for regional or international connections, commerce, and communications. A big c ...

and attacked

Jimmy Olsen Jimmy Olsen is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Olsen is most often portrayed as a young photojournalist working for the ''Daily Planet''. He is close friends with Lois Lane and Clark Kent, and has ...

. Superman quickly took him down, knocking most of his teeth out (though they grew back). In all of his previous appearances he rarely spoke, but during this issue he was very verbose (although that may be because of Black's influence). He also was smaller and a long way from the water. King Shark also made an appearance during the Joker's '' Last Laugh'' riot with

Orca The orca or killer whale (''Orcinus orca'') is a toothed whale belonging to the oceanic dolphin family, of which it is the largest member. It is the only Extant taxon, extant species in the genus ''Orcinus'' and is recognizable by its black ...

. King Shark is recruited into

Alexander Luthor Alexander Luthor Jr. is a fictional character appearing in comic books published by DC Comics. Publication history Created by Marv Wolfman and George Pérez, the character made his first appearance in ''Crisis on Infinite Earths'' #1 (April 198 ...

's Secret Society of Super Villains and is one of the many sent to attack

Sub Diego Atlantis (sometimes called the Kingdom of Atlantis or the Atlantean Empire) is an aquatic civilization appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics commonly associated with the superhero, Aquaman. It is one of the numerous depictions ...

. During the battle he kills

Neptune Perkins Paintball Paintball is a DC Comics supervillain who first appeared in ''Stars and S.T.R.I.P.E.'' #2 and was created by Geoff Johns and Leo Moder. Paul Deisinger is an art teacher who was transformed into a paint-themed criminal and became a mini ...

. Nanaue reappears

one year ''One Year'' is the debut solo studio album by English singer-songwriter Colin Blunstone, a member of the Zombies. It was released by Epic Records in 1971. It includes "Say You Don't Mind", which peaked at number 15 on the UK Singles Chart. Prod ...

after the '' Infinite Crisis'', bearing a scar from a previous encounter with Aquaman. He is less violent and more talkative than in previous appearances. His origin has been definitely given as him being the son of the Shark God, due to the new Aquaman book being more magic-based than previous incarnations. He is a major character in the series, acting as an unwilling caretaker for Arthur Joseph Curry. Saved from a gang of marauders by the young man, he brought Curry to the mysterious Dweller in the Depths (the mutated, for unknown reasons, Aquaman) who gave him the role of assisting the ''new Aquaman'' in filling his role. Albeit feigning disrespect, and often disappearing for a while, King Shark accepted, sharing his knowledge of the way of sea with his young savior. It is later revealed in a flashback sequence that he was asked to do so by his father:

The currents of destiny bend and twist around that young man. For good or ill, he will shape the coming oceanscape. You will protect him. You will be my agent in his camp. Close enough to guard against others who seek to control him. And close enough, when I decide the time is ripe... ... to strike, and kill him without warning.

The following arc tells the first meeting between the original Aquaman and King Shark, which occurred several years ago. It took place in Reef's End, a little border town in the Coral Sea, distant from Atlantis. Orin — who was still the King of Atlantis at this time — fought King Shark because he murdered a priest of the Order of the Thorny Crown. King Shark had previously killed a number of members of this group, obeying his father's will. The Order was associated with an old prophecy:

When thorned crown lies shattered, she comes. Born of coral, of life-in-death, of long prayer. Shake the sea floor with her power, shall she, shake the destiny of all beneath the waves...

The Shark God believed that if the Order was destroyed, that would trigger the prophecy, birthing some great power in the process. However, King Shark was defeated by Aquaman before completing his father's goal. He then was imprisoned by priests of the Thorny Crown for three years before escaping; Nanaue mentions that he was tortured during his captivity. Following the ''

Final Crisis "Final Crisis" is a crossover storyline that appeared in comic books published by DC Comics in 2008, primarily the seven-issue miniseries of the same name written by Grant Morrison. Originally DC announced the project as being illustrated solely b ...

'', King Shark's jaw is broken after being cleaved wide open and later his left arm is ripped off his body during battle, but later grew back. King Shark is among Superboy's villains brought by

Krypto Krypto, also known as Krypto the Superdog, is a fictional superhero dog appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly in association with the character Superman. In most continuities, Krypto is Superman's pet dog, usually dep ...

to a hill near the

Smallville ''Smallville'' is an American superhero television series developed by writer-producers Alfred Gough and Miles Millar, based on the DC Comics character Superman created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster. The series was produced by Millar Gough ...

high school. However, he is either unconscious or stunned at the time. Most recently, he has joined the Secret Six as a brawler. His tenure with the Six proves to be short-lived, as the team is soon captured by a large group of superheroes during a failed mission in Gotham City. King Shark manages to briefly overpower his old foe Superboy during the battle, but is ultimately pummeled into unconsciousness by Supergirl.

The New 52 - present

In September 2011, DC Comics rebooted its fictional continuity in an initiative called

The New 52 The New 52 is the 2011 revamp and relaunch by DC Comics of its entire line of ongoing monthly superhero comic books. Following the conclusion of the " Flashpoint" crossover storyline, DC canceled all its existing titles and debuted 52 new serie ...

. In this new timeline, King Shark now resembles a humanoid hammerhead shark. He was tortured and forced into the Suicide Squad by Amanda Waller. When he came to the Suicide Squad having to comply with Amanda Waller's demands, King Shark ended up eating his teammate Yo-Yo (it is later revealed that Yo-Yo survived). During the 2013 " Forever Evil" storyline, King Shark is among the villains that the

Crime Syndicate Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

recruited to join the

Secret Society of Super Villains Secret Society of Super Villains (SSoSV) is a DC Comics title that debuted in May–June 1976. The series presented a group of DC's supervillains, mostly foes of the Justice League of America. The series was cancelled with issue #15 in July 1978, ...

. In the continuity resulting from the 2016 DC Rebirth initiative, King Shark began serving N.E.M.O under Black Manta. He began terrorizing

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

before being subdued by the

Teen Titans The Teen Titans are a superhero team appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, frequently in eponymous monthly series. As the group's name indicates, the members are teenage superheroes, many of whom have acted as sidekicks to DC ...

. He also appears as one of the many villains attempting to kill Batman to halt Two-Face's data breach, attacking Batman on a train alongside

Amygdala The amygdala (; plural: amygdalae or amygdalas; also '; Latin from Greek, , ', 'almond', 'tonsil') is one of two almond-shaped clusters of nuclei located deep and medially within the temporal lobes of the brain's cerebrum in complex verteb ...

and

Killer Croc Killer Croc is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, commonly as an adversary of the superhero Batman. The character belongs to the collective of adversaries that make up Batman's rogues gallery. Originally a ...

. After leaving the organization, King Shark attempted to live a more peaceful life, only to be captured by the Markovian military under allegations of cannibalizing a Markovian general.

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth Holloway Marston, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byr ...

soon arrived, doubting that he committed the crime, and used the Lasso of Truth on him to prove his innocence. She them left him in the hands of Aquaman, hoping to start anew in Atlantis. Following Aquaman's usurpation of the throne, King Shark returns as a crime lord of the Ninth Tride with plans to expand his empire to more regions of Atlantis. He has his minions capture Mera to use as a bargaining chip and has a run-in with the still alive Aquaman. He convinces King Shark to work with him at stopping King Rath's murderous ambitions on the condition that the Ninth Tride would receive better treatment by the new monarch. As a show of good faith, King Shark gives Mera back to Arthur. With their combined forces, they were able to free Atlantis from the Crown of Thorns.

Powers and abilities

King Shark's augmented flesh provides protection against the pressures of the deep and physical attacks. His shark-like physiology includes teeth and claws, which are used as weapons, and

gill A gill () is a respiratory organ that many aquatic organisms use to extract dissolved oxygen from water and to excrete carbon dioxide. The gills of some species, such as hermit crabs, have adapted to allow respiration on land provided they are ...

s that allow him to breathe underwater. He can swim at great speeds and is resistant to cold. King Shark has enhanced strength and endurance, and he can also regenerate lost bodily tissue. His incredible strength and mystical nature means that his bite can even pierce the skin of Kryptonians.

Other versions

"Flashpoint"

In the alternate timeline of the 2011 " Flashpoint" storyline King Shark works as a strongman freak show in the Haley's Circus. Haley's Circus is attacked by

Amazons In Greek mythology, the Amazons (Ancient Greek: Ἀμαζόνες ''Amazónes'', singular Ἀμαζών ''Amazōn'', via Latin ''Amāzon, -ŏnis'') are portrayed in a number of ancient epic poems and legends, such as the Labours of Hercules, ...

, and King Shark is killed while trying to save Doctor Fate.

''Batman: Arkham Knight''

In the '' Batman: Arkham Knight'' prequel comic, King Shark's son "Kid Shark" attacks

Batman Batman is a superhero appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by artist Bob Kane and writer Bill Finger, and debuted in Detective Comics 27, the 27th issue of the comic book ''Detective Comics'' on ...

on the street.

Commissioner Gordon James W. "Jim" Gordon, Sr. is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics, most commonly in association with the superhero Batman. Created by Bill Finger and Bob Kane as an ally of Batman, the character deb ...

happened to be in the area and joined in the fight, providing enough of a distraction for Batman to hit Kid Shark in the back of the head with a fire hydrant. The Gotham City Police Department picked him up shortly afterwards.

''Young Justice''

King Shark appears in issue #14 of the ''

Young Justice Young Justice is a fictional DC Comics superhero team consisting of teenaged heroes. The team was formed in 1998 when DC's usual teen hero group, the Teen Titans, had become adults and changed their name to the Titans. Like the original ''Teen ...

'' tie-in comic book. King Shark is known in this franchise as King Nanaue Sha'ark. He is shown as a student at the same Atlantean sorcery academy that Aqualad once attended. King Sha'ark is also the ruler of the Atlantean city-state Nanauve. Sha'ark has the habit of referring to those he considers weaker than himself as "

chum Chum may refer to: Broadcasting * CHUM Limited, a defunct Canadian media company * CHUM Radio, now Bell Media Radio, a Canadian radio broadcasting company * CHUM (AM), a Toronto radio station * CHUM-FM, a Toronto radio station * CHUM Chart, a C ...

". In issue #15, Lori Lemaris and Topo had to convince Sha'ark not to eat the former Atlantean Purist Ronal (who was pardoned by Aquaman).

''The Flash: Season Zero''

King Shark appears in ''

: Season Zero'' tie-in comic, in which a dying Shay Lamden accepts an offer by Dr. Shults to undergo an experimental procedure employing shark cells to regenerate his dying body's cells. During the procedure, a particle accelerator explodes, mutating him into a humanoid shark, after which Lamden develops a vendetta against those involved in the procedure. This brings him into conflict with the Flash and the Suicide Squad.

In other media

Television

* King Shark appears in ''

'', portrayed by Dan Payne as a human and voiced by David Hayter as King Shark. This version is originally Shay Lamden, a marine biologist from Earth-2 who was transformed by Harry Wells'

S.T.A.R. Labs Scientific and Technological Advanced Research Laboratories (S.T.A.R. Labs) is a fictional scientific research facility and organization appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It first appeared in ''Superman'' #246 (December 1 ...

particle accelerator into an anthropomorphic great white shark, and fell under

Zoom Zoom may refer to: Technology Computing * Zoom (software), videoconferencing application * Page zooming, the ability to magnify or shrink a portion of a page on a computer display * Zooming user interface, a graphical interface allowing for image ...

's control while his

Earth-1 Earth-One (also Earth-1) is a name given to two fictional universes (The Pre-Crisis and Post-Crisis versions of the same universe) that have appeared in American comic book stories published by DC Comics. The first Earth-One was given its name ...

counterpart died when his S.T.A.R. Labs' accelerator exploded. * King Shark appears as a main character in '' Harley Quinn'', voiced by Ron Funches. This version is a kind and peaceful tech genius who wears clothes and is shown to have a generally positive attitude. However, he occasionally goes berserk if he smells blood, and becomes angry when anyone uses fish-related insults around him. * King Shark appears in '' Young Justice: Phantoms'', voiced by James Arnold Taylor. This version is ruler of the Atlantean city state of Nanauve and a former student of the Atlantean Conservatory of Sorcery.

Film

* King Shark makes a non-speaking minor appearance in '' Superman/Batman: Public Enemies''. * King Shark appears in '' Batman: Assault on Arkham'', voiced by John DiMaggio. This version is a large human with mutated features, a metal mask that augments his biting capability, and a red mohawk in place of a dorsal fin. He is recruited by Amanda Waller to become a member of the Suicide Squad, who are tasked with killing the

Riddler The Riddler (Edward Nigma, later Edward Nygma or Edward Nashton) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by Bill Finger and Dick Sprang, and debuted in ''Detective Comics'' #140 in Oc ...

. During the mission, King Shark forms a friendship with Killer Frost and is killed by a bomb Waller implanted into the squad members' necks to control them. * King Shark appears in '' Justice League Dark: Apokolips War'', voiced again by John DiMaggio. This version is a member of the Suicide Squad and

John Constantine John Constantine () is a fictional character who appears in American comic books published by DC Comics. Constantine first appeared in ''Swamp Thing'' #37 (June 1985), and was created by Alan Moore, Stephen R. Bissette, Rick Veitch, and John ...

's ex-boyfriend. King Shark and his team assist the Justice League in an attempt to defeat

Darkseid Darkseid () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character was created by writer-artist Jack Kirby to serve as the primary antagonist of his "Fourth World (comics), Fourth World" metaseries, and was firs ...

before the squad is killed in an explosion. * King Shark appears in '' The Suicide Squad'', voiced by

, with

providing on-set motion-capture performance during filming. This version displays a childlike demeanor and speaks in a monosyllabic manner with simple sentences. After being recruited into the Suicide Squad to infiltrate and destroy a Corto Maltese prison containing

Starro Starro (also known as Starro the Conqueror) is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. The character first appeared in ''The Brave and the Bold'' #28 (February–March 1960). It was created by Gardner Fox and Mike ...

, King Shark forms a friendship with teammate

Ratcatcher 2 The DC Extended Universe (DCEU) is an American media franchise and shared universe centered on superhero films and other series starring various titular superheroes produced by DC Films, distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, and based on ch ...

Video games

* King Shark appears as a playable character in '' Lego Batman 3: Beyond Gotham'', voiced by Travis Willingham. He is part of the DLC "The Squad". This version resembles his ''New 52'' counterpart. * King Shark appears as an unlockable playable character in '' Lego DC Super-Villains'', voiced by

Fred Tatasciore Fred Tatasciore (; ) is an American voice actor who has provided voices in animated and live-action films, television shows, and video games. He is known for voicing the Hulk and Beast (comics), Beast in various Marvel media and Solomon Grundy ( ...

. * King Shark appears in ''

DC Universe Online ''DC Universe Online'' (''DCUO'') is a free-to-play action combat massively multiplayer online game set in the fictional universe of DC Comics. Developed by Dimensional Ink Games and co-published by Daybreak Game Company and WB Games, the game w ...

'', voiced by

Dale Dudley ''The Dudley & Bob Show'' was a weekday morning comedic radio talk show airing on 93.7 KLBJ-FM, from 6:00 to 10:00 am CT in Austin, Texas that consistently ranked among the city's top-rated drive-time shows. Anchor host Dale Dudley, origin ...

. * King Shark will appear as a playable character in '' Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League'', voiced by Samoa Joe.

Web series

* King Shark appears in ''

DC Super Hero Girls ''DC Super Hero Girls'' or ''DC Superhero Girls'' (in various countries) is an American superhero web series and franchise Produced by Warner Bros. Animation for Cartoon Network based on characters from DC Entertainment that launched in the thi ...

'', voiced by

Kevin Michael Richardson Kevin Michael Richardson (born October 25, 1964) is an American actor. Known for his distinctively deep voice, he has mostly voiced villainous characters in animation and video games. In film, Richardson voiced Goro in ''Mortal Kombat'' (1995) ...

References

{{Superboy Suicide Squad members Characters created by Karl Kesel Comics characters introduced in 1994 DC Comics characters who can move at superhuman speeds DC Comics characters with accelerated healing DC Comics characters with superhuman strength DC Comics deities DC Comics male supervillains DC Comics metahumans DC Comics supervillains DC Comics hybrids DC Comics animals Fictional cannibals Fictional characters from Hawaii Fictional characters with slowed ageing Fictional characters with superhuman senses Fictional demigods Fictional humanoids Fictional human–animal hybrids Fictional kings Fictional sharks de:Superboy#King Shark