# Facing Fear: Paul de Gelder Takes on Shark Week With Purpose and Power **URL:** \ **Category:** People of Con\ **Created:** [July 25, 2025, 6:22am UTC](https://forum.geektherapy.org/t/facing-fear-paul-de-gelder-takes-on-shark-week-with-purpose-and-power/5612 "2025-07-25T06:22:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 1\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![PeopleOfCon](https://forum.geektherapy.org/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/p/77aa72/32.png) [@PeopleOfCon](https://forum.geektherapy.org/u/PeopleOfCon)\ **Post date:** [July 25, 2025, 6:22am UTC](https://forum.geektherapy.org/t/facing-fear-paul-de-gelder-takes-on-shark-week-with-purpose-and-power/5612/1 "2025-07-25T06:22:58Z")
Originally published at: [Facing Fear: Paul de Gelder Takes on Shark Week With Purpose and Power - People of Con](https://geektherapy.org/facing-fear-paul-de-gelder-takes-on-shark-week-with-purpose-and-power/) Author: Xavier Scudder [Paul de Gelder](https://www.pauldegelder.com/) is no stranger to danger. After surviving a shark attack in 2009, the former Navy diver turned conservationist has spent the years since transforming fear into purpose. This Shark Week, de Gelder returns with a lineup of specials that push the limits of human resilience and explore the myths, truths, and mysteries of the ocean’s most misunderstood predators. We sat down with Paul to talk about how diving with sharks helps him stay grounded, why connection to the natural world is crucial to healing, and what _[Jaws](https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073195/)_ got wrong. ### Air Jaws: The Hunt for Colossus _[Air Jaws: The Hunt for Colossus](https://go.discovery.com/show/air-jaws-the-hunt-for-colossus-discovery-atve-us)_ Premieres Tuesday, July 22 at 9 PM ET/PT on Discovery When a 20-foot great white breaches in New Zealand, it sparks a global hunt for Colossus, the legendary flying shark who vanished from South African waters a decade ago. Could he still be alive and lead researchers to a lost colony of great whites? Paul helps lead the charge in this epic search. ### How to Survive a Shark Attack _How to Survive a Shark Attack_ also premieres Tuesday, July 22 at 9 PM ET/PT on Discovery In one of Shark Week’s boldest experiments, Paul provokes real sharks to bite his prosthetic limbs, under expert supervision, mind you, to teach viewers how to survive the unthinkable. “We talk about how to survive,” Paul told us. “But we’ve never actually shown it. Until now.” Despite the intensity, the goal isn’t to demonize sharks. It’s to educate people, save lives, and show respect for nature’s most powerful predators. ### _Black Mako of the Abyss_ _[Black Mako of the Abyss](https://go.discovery.com/show/black-mako-of-the-abyss-discovery-atve-us)_ Premieres Tuesday, July 22 at 10 PM ET/PT on Discovery Joined by [Kendyl Berna](https://www.instagram.com/_kendyl_/?hl=en) and [Keith Poe](https://www.instagram.com/sharktagger/?hl=en), Paul investigates a massive, aggressive, dark-skinned shark unlike anything documented before. Is it a new species, a mako–great white hybrid, or a deep-sea mystery waiting to be solved? This hour dives into what may be one of the most important shark discoveries in recent history. ### Attack of the Devil Shark _Attack of the Devil Shark_ Premieres Saturday, July 26 at 8 PM ET/PT on Discovery Though this special stars[Kinga Phillips](https://www.kingaphilipps.com/), Paul’s presence in the Shark Week conversation makes this worth mentioning. When a rogue tiger shark strikes twice in St. Martin, a team of experts investigates a growing legend and finds a possible seismic link to shark aggression. ### A Life Reclaimed by the Ocean For Paul, reconnecting with the sea became a lifeline. “Just knowing the ocean is there, even if I’m not in it, keeps me grounded,” he told us. “It’s an expanse of space with no people, just nature. And that connection? It heals.” This year marks the[50th anniversary of the release of _Jaws_](https://www.jaws50th.com/), which premiered on June 20, 1975. With Paul diving into _Air Jaws: The Hunt for Colossus_, we asked for his expert take on the film’s legacy. “They got a lot wrong,” he said, “especially the idea of sharks being vengeful. They’re just animals in their environment.” What makes sharks so remarkable, he shared, is their tolerance. “They allow you to share their space. You can’t do that with bears or wolves. Treat them with respect, and they’ll do the same.” Whether it’s education, adrenaline, or awe, Paul brings it all. Tune in Tuesday, July 22 and Saturday, July 26 to witness a man who turned trauma into purpose and fear into advocacy.