Top 10 Adult Jokes in Shark Tale You Missed As A Kid

As Oscar emerges from Lenny’s mouth during their staged showdown, he quotes three famous films. From “Gladiator,” to “A Few Good Men,” to “Jerry Maguire,” there’s something for every taste in his spiel. It’s the romantic line from the latter film that really captures Angie’s attention, however, and for good reason. Sure, it’s a weird line, context-wise. But there’s a direct connection that’s easy to miss. Namely, Renée Zellweger - the voice of Angie - played the character who uttered those famous words in the 1996 film. A young kid watching “Shark Tale” will simply hear some clever one-liners. But there’s a lot for the adults to enjoy!

Lola knows what she wants, and she’s not afraid to go after it. For much of the film, that means using her charm to seduce Oscar and gain his trust. Unsurprisingly, this doesn’t always yield kid-friendly results. For instance, after Sykes and the jellyfish leave a very stressed out Oscar, Lola takes it upon herself to calm him down. She plays mood music, dims the lights, and even gives him a massage. Plus, when he mentions the possibility of retiring, she quickly - and aggressively - shows him who’s boss. Needless to say, Lola is definitely one of the more...risqué characters we’ve ever seen in a kids movie.

As Oscar contemplates his choices on the balcony, his “Preparation O” ad passes by. Of course, this is a hilarious play on Preparation H. The slogan even draws a clever parallel between the medicine and Oscar’s shark-slaying skills. It’s safe to say that the vast majority of children don’t know what hemorrhoids are, let alone how they’re treated. But odds are that their parents and grandparents have heard of the product, and got a good chuckle out of this moment. Oscar then breaks up with Lola, the emotional hemorrhoid in his life, so this ad gets the metaphorical seal of approval from us.

When Don Lino tries to force Lenny to eat a shrimp, things get pretty intense. That little guy isn’t just trying to escape, he’s begging for his life! What’s more, the story he shares about his family is incredibly tragic. The interaction is way more morbid than most of us initially realized, so we breathed a huge sigh of relief when Lenny let him and the others go. Luckily, that’s not the last we see of the shrimp. In a moment of karmic justice, they get some sweet revenge towards the end of the film. Oh, and that’s a “Scarface” reference that’s probably gone over kids’ heads like a million times by now.

The Whale Wash aims to please. As Angie takes a customer’s order, she begins upselling him on treatments. And he’s quite receptive to her suggestions. At first glance, it all seems innocent enough. After all, a kelp scrape isn’t something salacious in and of itself. But the whale’s reason for wanting the treatment certainly is, and he’s not shy about it. We’re not sure whom he’s trying to impress, but that’s probably a question for a separate movie. Interestingly, the whale isn’t the only one with love on the brain. Angie herself daydreams about being with Oscar later in the scene, so there’s definitely something in the water.

During a pivotal meeting, Don Lino throws Sykes into a portrait. If something about the artwork seems familiar to you, it’s because it looks an awful lot like the one of Rose in “Titanic,” only with more clothes, thankfully. On top of that, the encounter takes place inside a sunken ship, which makes the whole thing even eerier. Amazingly, those aren’t the only references to the 1997 film. Frankie’s funeral is also complete with a “Titanic” life ring and a bunch of guests who do not want to hear Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On.” It all seems rather arbitrary if you’re not familiar with Jack and Rose’s story, but these moments are anything but random.

The infamous theme from “Jaws” gets numerous chances to shine in this 2004 movie. First, it plays as Lenny sneaks up on a worm only to free him. Then, Frankie arrives and brings the tune to life - much to his brother’s dismay. Later in the film, Lenny embraces the sinister melody during his fake fight with Oscar. And that’s not all! In that same scene, he flies through a “Jaws” billboard. On the surface, it’s an ad for the “perfect smile.” But the adults in the room understand the gag. With a title like “Shark Tale,” it would have been irresponsible not to reference the 1975 classic as many times as possible.

As Oscar tries to do a cool handshake with Sykes, it’s clear his boss is not in the mood. Viewers know it’s because he’s just had a serious meeting with Don Lino. But Oscar is completely oblivious, and thinks he’s just not getting it. In a hilarious attempt to comfort him, he exclaims that certain types of fish just lack the ability to execute the move. Sykes eventually figures out the handshake, and repeats a version of the comment when Don Lino fails to snap his fin. What do white fish and great whites have in common? We bet you know.

When Oscar decides to bet $5,000 on seahorse Lucky Day, he lands squarely on Lola’s radar. As the film progresses, it becomes increasingly obvious that she’s up to no good. But the alarm bells actually start ringing the moment she shows up on our screens. Her introduction contains a crucial detail that definitely flew over our heads when we were kids. The song playing as she appears isn’t just catchy: it’s a warning to stay away from her! While Oscar is distracted by her looks, the lyrics are unambiguous in their message. Lola is only interested in getting rich, and cannot be trusted.

Towards the start of the film, we go on a little tour of the city. Obviously, it’s located underwater and populated by fish instead of humans. But aside from that, it seems like any other metropolitan area. Yet one location is highly questionable, to put it mildly. There is a restaurant, in the ocean, dubbed the Sushi Bowl. We'll give you one guess as to why the only fish present on opening day is a disgruntled worker, unless, maybe, you count the “merchandise.” While younger viewers may not put two and two together, older ones are likely to go slack-jawed at this horrifying implication.