The Devil’s Mouth (2026)

“I’m not afraid of the water, just what might be in it.”

Kathryn Newton has been on a role in recent years. With starring roles in successful films like Lisa Frankenstein (2024), Abigail (2024), Freaky (2020), and Ready Or Not 2: Here I Come (2026), and supporting roles in hits like Ant-Man And The Wasp: Quantumania (2023), it looks like she has solidified her spot as a bonafide star. It’s that star-power that drew me to her latest film, the direct-to-streaming Amazon thriller The Devil’s Mouth (2026). Written by Aja Gabel and Myung Joh Wesner and directed by Jeff Wadlow (Imaginary, Fantasy Island), the film made its debut on Amazon Prime on July 29th.

The film’s plot centers on a group of five friends, Sara (Newton), Max (Lana Condor), Greg (Gavin Casalegno), Adrienne (Tommi Rose), and James (Nico Hiraga), taking one last trip together before paving their way through life as adults. Sara and Max have been friends for years, with Sara crediting Max for helping her navigate some negative times in her life. Max and James are a couple, but there’s friction between them due to Max being a control freak. Adrienne brings along Greg, her latest boy-toy, who is as immature as you’d expect a guy like him to be in a film like this. While hanging out on a yacht in Thailand, Sara gets mistakenly left behind for a brief moment and swims into a school of jellyfish that sting her. After she is rescued, tensions rise between her and Max, but the pair mend their differences and the group decides to have one last adventure before going home by exploring a flooded cave system highlighted by a grisly formation known as the Devil’s Mouth.

Along with their guide, Wat (Tayme Thapthimthong), the group enter the dark caverns only to discover that they are not alone. Due to a recent storm surge, saltwater has entered the cave system and brought with it a menacing bull shark. When they discover that a diver that has been exploring the caves with them has been attacked, the group has to find a way out of the caves safely. The shark goes on the hunt and one-by-one, it takes out members of the group. Who survives? Only those brave enough to watch The Devil’s Mouth will find out what happens!

The cast is good enough. Newton gives one of the best performances in the film, but I have to give Lana Condor my vote for best actress for the simple fact that I absolutely hated her character! I believe that this might be due to the fact that my wife had a controlling friend in college that acted much like Max does in this movie. Adrienne, James, and Wat are likeable characters. Poor Greg is annoying and immature…..and has shark bait written all over him.

The film is very dark and it’s hard to see what’s actually going on a lot of the time. The darkness also hides some of the limitations of the CGI shark, although it’s a pretty good-looking creature for a direct-to-streaming flick. The story plods along and, in all honesty, could have been shaved down by about twenty or so minutes. Overall, it’s not a terrible movie, but it adds nothing to the shark horror genre. If you like shark attack films, give it a look. If you feel that shark movies peaked with Jaws, skip this saltwater sleeper.

Thanks for checking out my review!