SeaWorld Issue A Statement That Blackfish Is "Inaccurate And Misleading"

A documentary about the killer whale TILIKUM, who performs at SEAWORLD and was involved the deaths of three people, was bound to be unpopular with SeaWorld and the company has unsurprisingly issued a statement about the film ahead of its release.



The documentary in question, Blackfish, premiered at Sundance in January, where it received a number of glowing reviews. It seems to have become a bit of talking point since and the American release this week has increased the public awareness of the film and the controversy about SeaWorld a great deal.




The film is reportedly very critical of SeaWorld keeping killer whales in captivity and the way in which they go about it.



SeaWorld have responded, , by branding the documentary "inaccurate and misleading" and going on to say that,



To promote its bias that killer whales should not be maintained in a zoological setting, the film paints a distorted picture that withholds from viewers key facts about SeaWorld - among them, that SeaWorld is one of the world's most respected zoological institutions, that SeaWorld rescues, rehabilitates and returns to the wild hundreds of wild animals every year, and that SeaWorld commits millions of dollars annually to conservation and scientific research. Perhaps most important, the film fails to mention SeaWorld's commitment to the safety of its team members and guests and to the care and welfare of its animals, as demonstrated by the company's continual refinement and improvement to its killer whale facilities, equipment and procedures both before and after the death of Dawn Brancheau.



DAWN BRANCHEAU was one of the three people who died in accidents involving Tilikum.



I feel very strongly about the importance of animal rights so look forward to watching Blackfish followed by that Nightline episode as soon as I can and then most likely doing as much reading around the subject as possible. This is a discussion well worth having and I'm glad that it's one that's being considered by a wider audience.



Blackfish opens in selected cities in America this week and will arrive on UK screens on the 26th of July and you can watch the UK trailer for the film below.
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