''Piranha'' is a

horror comedy Comedy horror, also known as horror comedy, is a literary, television, and film genre that combines elements of comedy and horror fiction. Comedy horror has been described as able to be categorized under three types: "black comedy, parody and sp ...

film series A film series or movie series (also referred to as a film franchise or movie franchise) is a collection of related films in succession that share the same fictional universe, or are marketed as a series. This article explains what film series are ...

that consists of five films. The

original film Original Film is an American film and television production company founded by Neal H. Moritz. Notable films the company has produced include the ''Fast & Furious'' franchise. History Original Film was started out in the early 1990s by Neal ...

is a

parody A parody, also known as a spoof, a satire, a send-up, a take-off, a lampoon, a play on (something), or a caricature, is a creative work designed to imitate, comment on, and/or mock its subject by means of satiric or ironic imitation. Often its sub ...

of the 1975 film ''

Jaws Jaws or Jaw may refer to: Anatomy * Jaw, an opposable articulated structure at the entrance of the mouth ** Mandible, the lower jaw Arts, entertainment, and media * Jaws (James Bond), a character in ''The Spy Who Loved Me'' and ''Moonraker'' * ...

''.

Films

''Piranha'' (1978)

''Piranha'' is a 1978 American horror B movie about a swarm of killer piranhas. It was directed and co-edited by Joe Dante and starred

Bradford Dillman Bradford Dillman (April 14, 1930 – January 16, 2018) was an American actor and author. Early life Bradford Dillman was born on April 14, 1930, in San Francisco, the son of Dean Dillman, a stockbroker, and Josephine (née Moore). Bradford's pa ...

Heather Menzies Heather Menzies Urich (December 3, 1949 – December 24, 2017) was a Canadian–American model and actress, known for her roles as Louisa von Trapp in the 1965 film ''The Sound of Music'' and Jessica 6 in the TV series '' Logan's Run''. Ea ...

Kevin McCarthy Kevin Owen McCarthy (born January 26, 1965) is an American politician, serving as House Minority Leader in the United States House of Representatives since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he served as House Majority Leader under spea ...

, Keenan Wynn,

Barbara Steele Barbara Steele (born 29 December 1937) is an English film actress known for starring in Italian gothic horror films of the 1960s. She has been referred to as the "Queen of All Scream Queens" and "Britain's first lady of horror". She played th ...

, and Dick Miller. Produced by

Roger Corman Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926) is an American film director, producer, and actor. He has been called "The Pope of Pop Cinema" and is known as a trailblazer in the world of independent film. Many of Corman's films are based on works t ...

, ''Piranha'' was inspired by the 1975 film ''

,'' which had been a major success for distributor

Universal Studios Universal Pictures (legally Universal City Studios LLC, also known as Universal Studios, or simply Universal; common metonym: Uni, and formerly named Universal Film Manufacturing Company and Universal-International Pictures Inc.) is an Americ ...

and director Steven Spielberg, and inspired a series of similarly themed B movies such as ''

Grizzly The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horri ...

''. The film involves a private investigator Maggie McNamara from Lyon Investigation hired by the wealthy J.R. Randolph to find his niece that has disappeared with her boyfriend. Maggie seeks out the lonely environmentalist Paul Grogan to help her to look for the teenager. They head to an abandoned army facility and Maggie decides to drain the pools to see whether the body of the girl is there. They are assaulted by a man with a crowbar but they subdue him. However she escapes and soon they learn that the woman is Dr. Leticia Baines, who is researching a hybrid species of piranha that is capable of surviving in fresh and sea waters for military purposes. Furthermore, Maggie has released the piranhas on the river and they are heading to the Lost River Lake Resort.

''Piranha II: The Spawning'' (1982)

''Piranha II: The Spawning'', also known as ''Piranha II: Flying Killers'', is a 1982 horror film and the sequel to the 1978 low-budget cult film ''Piranha'', and the feature film directorial debut of James Cameron.

''Piranha'' (1995)

''Piranha'', also known as ''Piranhas'', is a 1995 American horror film directed by Scott P. Levy about a school of killer piranhas descending upon the bustling Lost River Lake Resort. Produced as part of '' Roger Corman Presents'', a series of

TV film A television film, alternatively known as a television movie, made-for-TV film/movie or TV film/movie, is a feature-length film that is produced and originally distributed by or to a television network, in contrast to theatrical films made for ...

s by

for

Showtime Showtime or Show Time may refer to: Film * ''Showtime'' (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film * ''Showtime'' (video), a 1995 live concert video by Blur Television Networks and channels * Showtime Networks, a division of Paramount Global w ...

, it is a remake of the 1978 film ''Piranha''.

''Piranha 3D'' (2010)

''Piranha 3D'' is a 2010 American 3D horror comedy film and a remake of the 1978 film ''Piranha''. It was directed by Alexandre Aja and sports an ensemble cast featuring Steven R. McQueen,

Jessica Szohr Jessica Karen Szohr (;) is an American actress. She started her screen career appearing on television shows such as ''My Wife and Kids'' (2003), ''Joan of Arcadia'' (2004), '' What About Brian'' (2007) and ''CSI: Miami'' (2007). She gained recogn ...

Jerry O'Connell Jerry O'Connell (born February 17, 1974) is an American actor and television host. He is known for his roles as Quinn Mallory in the television series '' Sliders'', Andrew Clements in ''My Secret Identity'', Vern Tessio in the film '' Stand by ...

, Richard Dreyfuss,

Christopher Lloyd Christopher Allen Lloyd (born October 22, 1938) is an American actor. He has appeared in many theater productions, films, and on television since the 1960s. He is known for portraying Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown in the ''Back to the Future'' tril ...

Elisabeth Shue Elisabeth Judson Shue (born October 6, 1963) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles in the films ''The Karate Kid'' (1984), '' Adventures in Babysitting'' (1987), ''Cocktail'' (1988), '' Back to the Future Part II'' (1989), ''B ...

, Adam Scott,

Kelly Brook Kelly Ann Parsons (born 23 November 1979), known professionally as Kelly Brook, is an English model, actress, and media personality. She is known for her modelling work in the UK, and in the US for her role as Prudence on the NBC sitcom '' On ...

Riley Steele Riley Steele is an American pornographic actress and escortbr> Early life Steele grew up in Escondido, California. Before starting her adult film career, she worked at Starbucks and at a golf course snack bar. Adult film career In 2005, St ...

Ving Rhames Irving Rameses Rhames (born May 12, 1959) is an American actor. He is best known for his supporting roles as IMF Agent Luther Stickell in the ''Mission: Impossible'' film series and gang kingpin Marsellus Wallace in ''Pulp Fiction''. He also a ...

and

Eli Roth Eli Raphael Roth (born April 18, 1972) is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, and actor. As a director and producer, he is most closely associated with the horror genre, having directed the films '' Cabin Fever'' (2003) and ''Hoste ...

. The film begins with a sudden underwater tremor that frees scores of the prehistoric man-eating fish, and an unlikely group of strangers must band together to stop themselves from becoming fish food for the area's new razor-toothed residents.

''Piranha 3DD'' (2012)

''Piranha 3DD'' is a 2012 American 3D comedy horror film and sequel to the 2010 film ''Piranha 3D''. It is directed by

John Gulager John Thompson Gulager (born December 19, 1957) is an American actor, cinematographer and film director. Biography Film career The production and filming of ''Feast'' was the main focus of season three of ''Project Greenlight''. The film, mad ...

from a screenplay by

Marcus Dunstan Marcus Dunstan is an American screenwriter and director who, along with Patrick Melton, wrote screenplay for the film ''Feast'', which was the winner of Season Three of the filmmaking competition reality TV series '' Project Greenlight''. Dunstan ...

and

Patrick Melton Patrick Melton is an American screenwriter, producer and novelist. Film career In 2004, Melton won the third season of Project Greenlight, along with Marcus Dunstan and John Gulager. The television show premiered on Bravo and resulted in the ...

. It stars

Danielle Panabaker Danielle Nicole Panabaker (born September 19, 1987) is an American actress. She began acting as a teenager and came to prominence for her roles in the The Walt Disney Company, Disney films ''Stuck in the Suburbs'' (2004), ''Sky High (2005 film), ...

, Matt Bush,

David Koechner David Michael Koechner ( ; born August 24, 1962) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for playing roles such as Champ Kind in the ''Anchorman'' films and Todd Packer on NBC's ''The Office''. Koechner first became involved in perf ...

Chris Zylka Chris Zylka (born Christopher Michael Settlemire; born May 9, 1985) is an American actor and model, known for his roles in the films ''Shark Night'' (2011), ''The Amazing Spider-Man'' (2012), Doyce Plunk in the TV series '' Zeke and Luther'' (2009 ...

Katrina Bowden Katrina Bowden (born September 19, 1988) is an American actress. She is best known for her roles as Cerie on the NBC sitcom '' 30 Rock'' (2006–2013) and as Flo Fulton on the CBS daytime soap opera '' The Bold and the Beautiful'' (2019–pre ...

Gary Busey Gary Busey (; born 1944) is an American actor. He is best known for his portrayal of Buddy Holly in ''The Buddy Holly Story'' (1978), for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actor and won the National Society of Film Critics ...

, and

David Hasselhoff David Michael Hasselhoff (born July 17, 1952), nicknamed "The Hoff", is an American actor, singer, and television personality. He has set a Guinness World Record as the most watched man on TV. Hasselhoff first gained recognition on ''The You ...

. Production began on April 27, 2011 with a release scheduled for November 23, 2011, but a month prior to release this date was revised to an unspecified 2012 date. The film was eventually released in the UK on May 11, 2012 and in the U.S. on June 1, 2012.

Cast and crew

Cast

Crew

References

{{Piranha (film series) Horror film series Comedy film series Parodies of horror