Floyd, the newspaper reporter (Bob J. Shield), was dressed in the exact same style of clothes as worn by Darren McGavin's character Carl Kolchak in the 1974-75 tv series "Kolchak: The Night Stalker", who was also a newspaper reporter in that series.
One of a cycle of 1980s and mid-late 1970s movies that got made after the box-office success of Jaws (1975). The films include that movie's three sequels, Jaws 2 (1978), Jaws 3-D (1983), and Jaws: The Revenge (1987), as well as Orca (1977), Piranha (1978), Tentacles (1977), Killer Fish (1979), Barracuda (1978), Tintorera: Killer Shark (1977), Blood Beach (1980), Piranha II: The Spawning (1982), The Last Shark (1981), Up from the Depths (1979), Humanoids from the Deep (1980), The Island of the Fishmen (1979), Devil Fish (1984) and Mako: The Jaws of Death (1976).
The film's synth score is by celebrated electronic composer and Krautrock musician Klaus Schulze (Next of Kin; Angst).
Director Joe Dante was offered to direct the film because of his experience with the aquatic creature feature film 'Piranha' (1978) which had been released earlier that year.
This sea monster movie debuted in the same 1978 year as 'Jaws 2' (1978) and 'Piranha' (1978).