Freeing Flipper

Executive produced by Academy Award–winning Leonardo DiCaprio, Freeing Flipper traces the remarkable journey of Ric O’Barry, once the globe’s top-paid dolphin trainer, who has spent half a century risking life and liberty to secure dolphins' freedom. In the 1960s, O’Barry trained the dolphins featured in Flipper—the TV phenomenon that endeared America to dolphins on screen. Everything shifted when his dolphin Kathie died in his arms in what he believed was an act of despair, turning the industry’s golden boy into its most ardent adversary. As founder of Dolphin Project, O’Barry has devoted five decades to unveiling the hidden world of dolphin captivity, from marine parks to Japan’s infamous dolphin hunts. Admired by some, condemned by others, he remains driven by a single unwavering conviction: every captive dolphin deserves a path back home.