Martin Sheen Takes on the 'Mass Slaughter' of Home Aquariums with New Doc: 'Powerful Wake-Up Call' (Exclusive)

Martin Sheen Takes on the 'Mass Slaughter' of Home Aquariums with New Doc: 'Powerful Wake-Up Call' (Exclusive) https://ift.tt/EALpHPf

The actor produced the new documentary 'Aquariums: The Dark Hobby,' which covers the death of exotic fish, the reef and the ocean due to the home-aquarium trade

• Martin Sheen produced and provided an introduction for the new documentary Aquariums: The Dark Hobby
• The actor tells PEOPLE the documentary served as "a very powerful wake-up call" about what goes into sourcing exotic fish for aquariums around the world
• Sheen says he hopes no one who watches the documentary "will want to acquire an aquarium" after learning about the destruction they do to fish, the reef and the ocean

Martin Sheen senses something fishy in the aquarium industry.

The new documentary Aquariums: The Dark Hobby, which Sheen, 84, produced and for which he filmed the introduction, dives into the death of exotic fish, the reef and the ocean due to the home-aquarium trade.

“I have to confess to almost total ignorance of what was involved in supplying the fish tanks around the world and the level of destruction that's left behind, as well as the number of fish that die in transport and how short a lifespan they spend in captivity,” Sheen tells PEOPLE. “I was so embarrassed at my own ignorance. The documentary is a very powerful wake-up call.”

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Martin Sheen at the 17th annual CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute at The American Museum of Natural History on Dec. 10, 2023 in New York City

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In Aquariums, Native Hawaiian Elders, conservationists and scientists detail what goes into creating the beautiful aquariums seen around the world, and they share the lengths they continue to go to in order to ensure the survival of the fish that are targets of a global trade worth billions.

“When you realize what's going on, and what it took to bring them halfway across the world in very controlled circumstances, and how many didn't survive the journey, that alone is concerning,” Sheen says. “What is important to understand is not only that they are captured, but how they're captured. It's unbelievable the methods they use and the poisons that they infuse into the water and on the reefs.”

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A Potters angelfish in the documentary 'Aquariums: The Dark Hobby'

The West Wing alum says he “was astonished” to learn what went into creating the aquariums we see in restaurants, offices and private homes.

“I've never owned an aquarium, but I've known people that have, and I've admired the fish,” he says. “They almost look like they're trying to communicate. Well, we learned from the documentary, in fact, they are. They live in community very close, and they communicate and they have an environment that we're in the infant state of trying to understand.”

Sheen shares that 27 million fish are typically in the pipeline at one time to be sourced to aquariums, and 90% of them die within a year of capture. While activists and scientists have fought for legislation to be passed banning the trade of these types of fish, most of which come from Hawaii, they have not been successful.

“We have to make it illegal,” Sheen says. “If it continues, there won't be any reefs and then there won't be any fish. There's nothing more valuable than our environment. It's becoming a very divisive issue, and it should be a uniting one, because we all inhabit the same planet. Rich, poor, Black, White, young, old — this is the only home we have.”

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A sea turtle in the documentary 'Aquariums: The Dark Hobby'

Sheen hopes viewers realize “that they are unwittingly participants in mass slaughter,” which he describes as “totally inhumane.”

“They live in water. We don't see them every day except when they're in the tanks. It should lead us to realize they didn't come there by accident. We're so myopic in our vision of what's around us,” he says. “My hope is that those people that have the tanks will end their acquisitions and release the fish back to their environments if it's still possible."

"But more importantly," he adds, "that no one that sees the film will want to acquire an aquarium. These fish are live trophies in our homes, in our office, and public buildings and aquariums all over the world — but they're living creatures.”

Sheen believes “we are called upon to protect” these fish. “It's very clear what we're faced with,” he says. “In no uncertain terms, we really have to get up, speak out and start supporting each other for the good of all and not short-sightedness. We have to be aware of the humanity that suffers because of our decisions, or lack thereof.”

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Martin Sheen as President Josiah 'Jed' Bartlet on 'The West Wing'

The Grace and Frankie actor says that, even after nearly seven decades in Hollywood, activism remains his main calling card.

“Most young people are largely unaware of what I've done in film or the industry,” Sheen reasons. “I'm known mostly from my work with social justice and the nuclear issue and peace and justice and the death penalty and any number of things. You can't separate any of these issues because they're all related about our humanity or lack thereof.”

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He believes doing the right thing will help all of us live longer.

“My main involvement is just trying to make people aware of their day-to-day actions and how we come to become more human,” Sheen says. “Usually when we do the right thing, we feel better. We live longer and we communicate better. I'll be 85 this year, so I've been around a while, and if I feel something, I can't assume that someone else doesn't feel it."

"We're still responsible for what we do or what we fail to do that serves the best interest of all," he continues. "And usually when we do the right thing, we feel better. We live longer and we communicate better. Wake up and take courage and enter the reality that we are faced with right now.”

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Aquariums: The Dark Hobby will premiere on streaming platforms March 25.