Whalefall might have one of the wildest movie premises of 2026: a grieving scuba diver gets swallowed alive by a sperm whale – and has just one hour of oxygen to find his way back out.
Based on Daniel Kraus’ acclaimed novel, the upcoming survival thriller stars Austin Abrams as the unfortunate diver in question, with Josh Brolin playing his late father. And if being trapped inside one of the largest animals on Earth wasn’t claustrophobic enough, the newly released trailer suggests things will only get worse once he’s inside.
Directed by No One Will Save You filmmaker Brian Duffield, Whalefall arrives in cinemas just in time for spooky season. But what exactly is Whalefall about, who else is in the cast and – perhaps most intriguingly for us – how on earth did they film it?
Here’s everything we know.
What is Whalefall about?
Whalefall follows Jay Gardiner, played by Austin Abrams, a young man struggling with the death of his father, Mitt, played by Josh Brolin.
Jay heads into the waters off California’s Central Coast in search of his father’s remains, only for the dive to take a rather horrifying turn when he is swallowed by a huge sperm whale.
Trapped inside the animal with just one hour of oxygen remaining, Jay must figure out a way to escape. Ironically, it is the lessons passed down by the father with whom he shared a difficult relationship that may ultimately help save his life.
So yes, much of the movie really does take place inside a whale. But beneath the rather bonkers survival premise is a story about grief, family and a fractured father-son relationship, with flashbacks revealing more about Jay and Mitt as the former fights to stay alive.
Is Whalefall based on a book?
Yes. Whalefall is based on Daniel Kraus’ 2023 novel of the same name.
Kraus also worked on the movie adaptation, co-writing the screenplay alongside director Brian Duffield.
The film comes from 20th Century Studios and Imagine Entertainment, with Brian Grazer, Duffield, Jeb Brody and Allan Mandelbaum producing.
Who is in the Whalefall cast?
Austin Abrams leads the Whalefall cast as Jay Gardiner, while Josh Brolin plays his father, Mitt.
Abrams will be familiar to viewers from Euphoria, Weapons, This Is Us and The Line, while Brolin’s extensive film credits include Dune, No Country for Old Men, Sicario and his role as Thanos in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
The supporting cast includes Elisabeth Shue, John Ortiz, Jane Levy and Emily Rudd. Brian Duffield directs after previously helming the 2023 alien thriller No One Will Save You. He also wrote movies including Love and Monsters and Underwater.
Where is Whalefall set?
The movie is set off the Central Coast of California, where Jay goes diving in search of his father’s remains.
It’s a particularly fitting setting for a movie centred around a sperm whale. California’s Pacific coastline is known for its rich marine life, with the Monterey Bay area in particular one of the state’s major destinations for whale watching.
Where was Whalefall filmed?
Despite much of Whalefall taking place in the middle of the Pacific – and then somewhere considerably harder to reach – the production remained firmly in California.
Whalefall was filmed entirely in California, combining the dramatic coastline of the Monterey Peninsula with soundstage work in Los Angeles.
According to the Monterey County Film Commission, the production filmed at Jacks Peak Park, Monastery Beach and Monterey Bay, as well as other locations around the Monterey Peninsula. Local reporting at the time also identified Pacific Grove, Monterey, Carmel and Monterey High School among the locations used for the movie.
And what about the scenes taking place inside the whale? Director Brian Duffield revealed that the cast and crew spent the summer filming the creature’s interior on a soundstage in Studio City, California.
The result means that while Whalefall‘s most extraordinary location had to be created for the screen, the rugged Central California coastline surrounding Jay’s ill-fated dive is very much real.
Did they really build the inside of a whale for Whalefall?
Essentially, yes. Rather than treating the whale purely as a digital environment, Duffield has confirmed that the production spent the summer inside a whale on a Studio City soundstage.
That practical approach is particularly interesting given how much of the story relies on one actor being confined within an extremely unusual environment. The trailers reveal Abrams crawling and swimming through the creature’s dark interior as his oxygen supply steadily runs down.
It’s not exactly your standard Hollywood set. Visual effects inevitably play a major role in turning that constructed environment into a gigantic living sperm whale, but having a physical space for Abrams to perform within should help give Jay’s increasingly desperate situation a suitably claustrophobic feel.
Is the whale inWhalefall a sperm whale?
Yes. The creature that swallows Jay is a sperm whale.
Sperm whales are the largest toothed whales in the world and are famous for their extraordinary deep dives in search of prey, particularly squid.
Whalefall, however, is a survival thriller rather than a documentary, so we’d probably resist treating Jay’s journey through the animal as instructions for what to do should you ever find yourself in the extremely unlikely position of being swallowed by one.
When does Whalefall come out?
Whalefall opens exclusively in cinemas on October 16, 2026.
The mid-October release puts the survival thriller right in the middle of spooky season – although its combination of grief, underwater danger and extreme claustrophobia looks a little different from the year’s more traditional Halloween offerings.
20th Century Studios has already released trailers offering a look at Abrams’ desperate attempt to escape, as well as Brolin as his father.
California’s Central Coast provides the world outside the whale
While audiences are understandably going to spend a lot of Whalefall wondering how Jay could possibly escape, its California setting gives the movie another point of interest.
The Central Coast is home to some of the state’s most spectacular ocean scenery, with Monterey Bay particularly famous for marine wildlife. Visitors can explore Monterey and neighbouring Carmel-by-the-Sea, follow the coastline around the Monterey Peninsula or head out onto the Pacific on one of the area’s numerous whale-watching trips.
Hopefully, your own encounter with a whale will involve seeing one breach in the distance rather than viewing it from the inside.
Whalefall opens exclusively in cinemas on October 16, 2026.