Scream Star Melissa Barrera Dives Into Killer-Orca Horror From the Director of Deep Blue Sea
Abigail breakout will play John Travolta’s daughter in a Spain-set survival horror that goes straight for the jugular.
Melissa Barrera just signed on to fight killer orcas. Yes, really. It is a sea-set horror movie from Renny Harlin, the guy who once pitted LL Cool J against hyper-intelligent sharks. John Travolta is already aboard, and cameras are rolling. Let me get you up to speed.
What is Black Tides?
The film is called Black Tides, and it centers on Bill Pierce (John Travolta), who heads to Europe to mend fences with his estranged daughter Rebecca (Melissa Barrera) and her son, Sebastian (played by Dylan Torrell). That heartfelt reunion gets cut short when a pod of very unfriendly orcas decides the family boat is lunch. It is survival horror on the open water, with whales as the monsters.
The snapshot
- Director: Renny Harlin (Deep Blue Sea)
- Cast: John Travolta, Melissa Barrera, Alvaro Mel (A Perfect Story), Ella Bleu Travolta, and Dylan Torrell as Sebastian
- Who plays who: Travolta is Bill Pierce; Barrera is his daughter Rebecca
- Writers: Chris Sparling (Greenland) and Angel Agudo (Apocalypse Z)
- Status: Filming is underway in Gran Canaria, Spain (per Deadline)
- Timeline note: Travolta has been attached since May 2025; Barrera is the new add
What the team is saying
'Melissa brings both fire and vulnerability to a role that demands it all – emotionally, physically, and cinematically,' Harlin said. 'She and John are movie magic together, and they elevate every beat of this story.'
Producer Adrian Guerra says they are actually shooting at sea — which every filmmaker will tell you is a logistical headache — but the payoff is worth it. He describes the footage as gorgeous, says the cast clicked in a rare way, and credits Harlin with juggling big spectacle and grounded emotion.
Why this pairing makes sense
Barrera has quietly become a go-to in horror and horror-adjacent projects: Scream, Scream 6, vampire mayhem in Abigail, and the rom-com-creature-feature Your Monster. Harlin, meanwhile, has literal cred in the finned-creature space thanks to Deep Blue Sea. That 1999 shark thriller had mixed reviews on release and still pocketed a solid $165 million worldwide, and over 26 years it has been reappraised into near-classic status for shark-heads.
Also on Harlin's plate before Black Tides surfaces: The Strangers: Chapter 2, which just dropped a first-look teaser. Busy man, still chasing things with sharp teeth.
Orcas instead of sharks, Travolta plus Barrera, and Harlin back on the water — that is a lean, mean combo. If they stick the landing, this could be nasty in the best way.