Animal Planet Makes Waves on Earth Day with Sea-Saving Documentary WATSON, April 22

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in some almost immediate changes to the ecosystem – animals returning to their natural habitats, a reduction in air pollution – leaving many people understandably pondering the human experience. On Earth Day, eco-conscious viewers contemplating their responsibility to the planet can learn about another other ongoing crisis – poaching – with the enthralling documentary WATSON, premiering Wednesday, April 22 at 8 p.m. ET on Animal Planet.

Helmed by award-winning documentarian Lesley Chilcott (An Inconvenient Truth, Waiting for “Superman”) WATSON dives deep into the daunting voyages of Canadian-American Sea Shepherd Conservation Society’s founder, Captain Paul Watson. Watson has spent his life sailing across the globe to keep the oceans, and their inhabitants, safe against cruel and illegal activities by whatever means necessary.

In a blend of revealing interviews with Watson, archival clips of Sea Shepherd’s dramatic encounters, and spectacular underwater footage, WATSON tells the story of a courageous eco-vigilante willing to put his own life at risk while confronting whaling vessels from Europe to the Southern Ocean, seal hunters in Canada, shark finners in Central America, and more.

After co-founding Greenpeace at just 19 years old, Watson protested for environmental justice for eight years before leaving to take more aggressive action as the sole founder of the anti-poaching organization and movement Sea Shepherd.

“I am incredibly proud of this wonderful film by Lesley Chilcott, and I hope that it inspires people to be passionate about caring for and fighting to save our home — the planet Ocean,” says Watson.

WATSON premieres Wednesday, April 22 at 8 p.m. ET on Animal Planet.