TV & Movies

Your Definitive Guide To The Shark Week 2020 Schedule

From a possibly cannibalistic tiger shark to a Will Smith special.

by Rebecca Patton
Hammerhead Shark from 'Shark Week 2019'
Courtesy of Discovery

It's that time of year again: beginning Sunday, Aug. 9, Shark Week will air on the Discovery Channel, giving us all one more excuse to sit on the couch all day. The Shark Week 2020 schedule kicks off at 8 p.m. ET with plenty of shark jump footage in Air Jaws: Ultimate Breach Off, followed directly at 9 by a special featuring former boxer Mike Tyson. In fact, fans can look forward to plenty of celebrities this year, with appearances from Shaquille O'Neal, Will Smith, Adam DeVine, and Snoop Dogg, plus lots of nature footage and shark experts in between. See the full schedule below.

Sunday, August 9

  • 8 p.m. — Air Jaws: Ultimate Breach Off. Accompany three teams of researchers as they entice sharks to jump out of the water.
  • 9 p.m. — Tyson vs. Jaws: Rumble on the Reef. Former boxer Mike Tyson prepares for his epic showdown against some sharks, because why not!
  • 10 p.m. — Shark Lockdown. Researchers travel off the coast of New Zealand to study a group of female great whites dubbed "747s" due to their huge size (over 20 feet long!).
  • 11 p.m. — Expedition Unknown: Josh Gates Tonight. Each night at 11 p.m., Destination Truth host Josh Gates will helm a recap show, speaking with special guests over Zoom. "[W]e're inviting viewers to sail on over for a cocktail, good conversation, and a deeper dive into their favorite shows," Gates told People.

Monday, August 10

  • 8 p.m. — Abandoned Waters. Near Australia's Neptune Islands, scientists study great whites who, undisturbed by humans, have changed their behavior during the pandemic.
  • 9 p.m. — ShaqAttack. NBA legend Shaquille O'Neal teams up with YouTubers Dude Perfect and Mark Rober to figure which shark has the best attack.
  • 10 p.m. — Jaws Awakens. Chris Fallows, Jeff Kurr, and Dickie Chivell hunt for the supposed biggest male great white in the world. His name is Fred, and he lives off the coast of New Zealand.
  • 11 p.m. — Expedition Unknown: Josh Gates Tonight

Tuesday, August 11

  • 8 p.m. — Extinct or Alive: Land of the Lost Sharks. Conservationist and wildlife biologist Forrest Galante searches for three lost sharks in this Tuesday night special.
  • 9 p.m. — Will Smith: Off the Deep End. The Bad Boys star confronts his fear of swimming in open, shark-infested waters.
  • 10 p.m. — Great White Serial Killer Extinction. This special promises "one of the most spectacular attacks in Shark Week history," according to the Discovery Channel, and follows the so-called "Great White Serial Killer" as it hunts the California Sea Otter.
  • 11 p.m. — Expedition Unknown: Josh Gates Tonight

Wednesday, August 12

  • 8 p.m. — Monsters Under the Bridge. Locals claim there's a 15-foot long hammerhead shark named Big Moe under the Old Seven Mile Bridge in the Florida Keys. Scientists investigate what could be the Earth's biggest hammerhead.
  • 9 p.m. — Adam DeVine’s Secret Shark Lair. This special builds on the Workaholics star's last Shark Week appearance, in which he helped to tag a tiger shark named Zoey. Now, he's teaming up with Blake Anderson and Anders Holm to search for her hideout.
  • 10 p.m. — Great White Double Trouble. Apparently there are two groups of great whites dominating the Australian ocean, which has caused an upswing in shark attacks. Scientists set out to find which one reigns supreme.
  • 11 p.m. — Expedition Unknown: Josh Gates Tonight

Thursday, August 13

  • 8 p.m. —Air Jaws 2020. Jeff Kurr, Chris Fallows, and Dickie Chivell look back on 20 years of the best shark breach footage.
  • 9 p.m. — Sharkadelic Summer. Why are so many great whites congregating along the U.S. coastline? Snoop Dogg is on the case.
  • 10 p.m. — Mako Nation. Cameraman Andy Casagrande and shark scientist Riley Elliot look for the mako shark, whose population is dwindling.
  • 11 p.m. — Expedition Unknown: Josh Gates Tonight

Friday, August 14

  • 8 p.m. —Alien Sharks: First Contact. Researchers search deep beneath the ocean's surface for some of the world's strangest sharks.
  • 9 p.m. — Lair of the Great White. Scientists investigate why a particular group of great whites off the Western Australia coast are so violent, even venturing into their underground lair to solve the mystery.
  • 10 p.m. — Tiger Shark King. There's no Joe Exotic here, thankfully — just your run-of-the-mill hunt for a possibly cannibalistic tiger shark in the Caribbean.
  • 11 p.m. — I Was Prey. Two shark attack survivors tell their stories.

Saturday, August 15

  • 8 p.m. — Sharks of Ghost Island. Ghost Island is located near the Bermuda Triangle. Is that why there are so many sharks there?
  • 9 p.m. — Wicked Sharks. Dr. Greg Skomal utilizes the latest technology to see how shark attacks work from the animals' perspectives.
  • 10 p.m. — Sharks Gone Wild 3. This special answers all of your shark-related questions.
  • 11 p.m. — I Was Prey: Terrors from the Deep. Four more people recount their shark encounters.

Sunday, August 16

  • 8 p.m. — Naked & Afraid of Sharks 2. Former Naked and Afraid contestants Matt Wright, Jeff Zausch, Serena and Amber Shine, and Alex Maynard try and tough it out on a series of islands near the Bermuda Triangle. There are so many sharks there that it's received an unfortunate nickname: "Shark Alley."