Netflix just dropped the trailer for its upcoming documentary Titan: The OceanGate Disaster, which is set to shed new light on the doomed deep-sea expedition and the founder of the company, Stockton Rush.
In the early morning of Sunday, June 18, 2023, the Titan submersible began its descent into the depths of the North Atlantic Ocean in a bid to explore the Titanic wreck. Less than two hours later, it lost communication with its mothership – and it never resurfaced.
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After days of searching, the vessel was found to have imploded from the pressure of the surrounding waters, killing all five passengers on board: Shahzada Dawood, his son Suleman Dawood, Paul-Henri Nargeolet, Hamish Harding, and Stockton.
Conspiracy theories about what had happened to the sub soon shifted focus to the terrifying conditions on board, but even now there are many questions left unanswered. Filmmaker Mark Monroe is hoping to fill in the gaps with his Netflix documentary.
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Netflix documentary to reveal truth behind OceanGate Titan sub disaster
By examining Stockton Rush’s desire to be the next billionaire innovator no matter the cost, Titan: The OceanGate Disaster is set to highlight a terrifying truth: that the incident was completely avoidable.
Speaking to Netflix’s Tudum, Monroe said, “When the Titan submersible went missing, I was horrified and mesmerized by the 24/7 news coverage and global social commentary – just like the rest of the world.”
However, the filmmaker pointed out that “there was no context for what could have happened to those onboard, and the only touchpoint was the Titanic, a story that’s now become a grim fairy tale.”
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“The more I dug into this terrible tragedy, the more intrigued I became about how this could have ever happened in the first place, and who exactly was the man who built and then went down with this ship,” Monroe continued.
“We hope that this film can help provide answers to these very questions.”
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Titan: The OceanGate Disaster to feature whistleblower testimony
Netflix
What made the OceanGate disaster especially chilling wasn’t just the loss of life, but the details that followed, revealing it was doomed from the start – not that the passengers ever knew.
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The Titan sub was controlled by a modified video game controller, had limited emergency systems, and lacked certification from any recognized safety authority.
The interior was cramped, bolted shut from the outside, and constructed from carbon fiber, an experimental material that experts had repeatedly warned could fail under deep-sea pressure.
Each passenger had paid $250,000 for the voyage – a staggering fee for a journey that ended in tragedy. Now, Netflix’s documentary promises to go beyond the headlines for the first time, and bring long-overdue clarity to what really happened.
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As per Netflix, “Through exclusive access to whistleblower testimony, pivotal audio recordings, and footage from the company’s early days, the film provides an unprecedented look at the technical challenges, moral dilemmas, and shockingly poor decisions that culminated in the catastrophic expedition.”
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OceanGate CEO Stockton Rush called “psychopath”
Netflix
It’s also set to lift the lid on Stockton Rush, with former employees speaking about the working environment. In the new trailer, one talking head says, “He wanted fame. To fuel his ego, fame.”
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“I thought Stockton was a borderline psychopath,” states another. “How do you manage a person like that, who owns the company?”
Following the disaster, OceanGate was under deeper scrutiny than ever. The firm ultimately stopped all operations following investigations into the incident. But by this point, it was too late. Stockton and all the passengers died, and there’s no way to reverse what happened.
Monroe went on to say that the new documentary “critiques a segment of society who believe the rules don’t apply to them, and feel well within their rights to break them in the name of something greater.
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“The greatest tragedy, and what I hope audiences come to understand, is how this disaster was completely avoidable.”
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Titan: The OceanGate Disaster drops on Netflix on June 11, 2025. Until then, find out how to watch the 2023 Titan sub news documentary.