Could A Giant Octopus Kill A Megalodon? Giant Octopus Vs. Meg

As the second trailer for the Meg 2: The Trench is Released ( in my part of the world at least) we get a closer look at some of the marine creatures that are going to be featured in the movie. The giant squid we thought we saw is looking more like a giant octopus or kraken type creature and we take a few moments to explore what would happen if a truly Giant octopus faced off with a Megalodon as we are shown in the trailer.

The largest known octopus, the Giant Pacific Octopus, at 30 feet in length and 600 lbs would be of no threat to a Megalodon 50 plus feet long and 60 times heaver. An octopus would need to be scaled up to approximately 120 feet and 18 tons, Kraken sized, to be a threat to a fully grown Megalodon.

Could a giant octopus even of this (fantastical size) actually stand a chance against the formidable megalodon? In this article, we dive (ha!) into this and take a look if even a Kraken sized octopus could take on and win against the worlds largest ever shark – the megalodon.

Giant Octopus Vs. Megalodon

Before we jump into the likely outcome of an encounter between a Giant octopus and a Megalodon, as frankly on current knowledge that would be very short.

We want to let you know we have scaled up the octopus to the (our best guess) Kraken size it appears in the Meg 2 to give it a fair crack. This means we have given it an approximate length of around 120 feet.

So in this section we will take a look at all three, The Meg, the Largest octopus The giant Pacific, and then what that would be around 120 feet long if we scale up to our estimate for the giant octopus in the Meg 2 Trailer.

The Megalodon – The Prehistoric Shark

Dating back to the Cenozoic Era, the megalodon was one of the most formidable predators that ever lived.

This ancient shark is believed to have grown up to 60 feet in length, although smaller on average, with a bite force exponentially greater than that of the great white shark and currently greater than any other animal known.

Its huge, serrated teeth, some as long as a human hand, (7 inches) were designed for slicing through the flesh of its prey and although mainly feeding on large marine mammals it would have been opportunistic like most sharks.

The Giant Pacific Octopus – Todays Titan

The Giant Pacific Octopus, the largest known species of octopus in existence today, possesses a remarkable combination of strength, intellect, and adaptability.

With an arm span of 16 feet and up to 30 feet in the highest recorded, and weighing up to 110 pounds, (600 lbs. at its largest) these creatures are a force to be reckoned with.

Known for their ability to camouflage and their impressive problem-solving skills as well as those 8 individually brained arms giant octopus are certainly a threat!

The Legendary Kraken

Hailing from Norse mythology, the Kraken is a huge legendary sea monster , often depicted as a giant octopus-like creature. It was said to be capable of dragging entire ships under the sea and causing whirlpools.

While no real creature perfectly matches this description, and there is certainly artistic license being used some speculate that the legend might have originated from sightings of Giant Pacific Octopus or the Colossal Squid.

Apart from in very modern media, it is not thought they were able to take down modern ships, but a few hundred years ago a large ship could be considered about 70 feet, and if we scale up our octopus to Kraken size ( maybe 100-120 feet) with the additional weight it would certainly be a risk.

There is no definitive proof that the Kraken Existed but it certainly is a terrifying idea and there is at least one scientist who thinks he may have found evidence of a Kraken type prehistoric Cephalopod / giant octopus though.

We also have some other articles on Mythical animals you can check out in the list below.

What is the Black demon Shark

Table 1: Comparison of a Megalodon, Giant octopus, Colossal Squid and Kraken

Statistics	Megalodon	Giant Pacific Octopus	Colossal Squid	Kraken (Legend)
Length	Up to 60 feet	Up to 30 feet (arm span)	Up to 45 feet (tentacles included)	Unknown, often depicted as larger than a ship
Weight	Up to 100 tons	Up to 600 pounds	Up to 1,500 pounds	Unknown
Teeth/Beak	7-inch, serrated teeth	Beak, similar to a parrot’s	Large beak, capable of puncturing thick skin	Often depicted with beak and/or sharp tentacles
Other Weapons	Strong, powerful jaws	Camouflage, ink, strong grip of tentacles, venom	Long tentacles with sucker rings equipped with sharp hooks	Often depicted with long, strong tentacles capable of crushing ships
When They Lived/Exist	Around 23 to 3.6 million years ago	Currently exists	Currently exists	Mythical creature, first accounts in 13th century
Habitat	Worldwide, primarily in warm waters	Pacific Ocean, coastal waters	Southern Ocean, deep waters	Often depicted in Northern seas, particularly near Norway and Greenland

The Fight: Giant Octopus Vs. Megalodon

As we can see in the Trailer for the Meg 2: The Trench, there is at least one movie this year that will be pitting a giant octopus against the megalodon, though its not the firs time it has been done! ( Mega Shark Vs Giant Octopus) it may be the first time it has been done with such a big budget.

The budget is not the only large thing about this as in real terms a current Giant octopus has little to no chance against a megalodon as we look at below.

When it comes to a showdown between a megalodon and a real-world Giant Pacific Octopus, the outcome seems fairly clear. The giant octopus, while intelligent and resourceful, would be overwhelmingly outmatched in size and strength.

The megalodon’s formidable teeth and sheer force would likely prove devastating to the octopus. And it could be taken in one bite.

Even an octopus’s primary defense mechanisms — including camouflage, flight, and ink expulsion — would offer little resistance against the Meg’s superior size and speed apart from perhaps to annoy it. Although the octopus is skilled in evasion and escape, in a direct confrontation with a megalodon, its prospects appear grim.

So, as in the Meg 2: The Trench, we have to scale it up to Kraken like sizes.

The Kraken vs. The Megalodon

But what if the challenger were not a Giant Pacific Octopus but a mythical Kraken, a creature often shown as being a huge octopus type creature, large enough to sink entire ships.

Then the story might be different. If we take the lore of the Kraken at face value — with its gargantuan size and strength — it might not only hold its own against the Meg but potentially pose a significant threat.

The Kraken’s long, crushing tentacles, if we do scale them up to 120 or so feet could theoretically ensnare and constrict a megalodon stopping it moving, or if powerful enough acting like 8 Titanoboa’s wrapped around it.

Even the if the suckers couldn’t penetrate the megalodon sharks skin they would be able to grip it and perhaps drown it, or subdue it enough to allow its beak, which would be equally large to get in some digs. As long as it stays away from those jaws though.

While no known creature matches the Kraken’s description the quick glimpses in the Meg 2: The Trench Trailer certainly seem to fit the bill! We now think, while there will be more prehistoric creatures unleased from the trench, we may not see the Liopleurodon after all.

We still have some hope with the ” that’s the Apex predator” line in the movie relating to neither the meg or the kraken / giant octopus though, and hope for a dramatic scene where a marine reptile – either kronosaurus or Liopleurodon eats both the octopus and the meg at some point

Next, we’ll explore if a giant octopus, or perhaps a Kraken-like creature, would actually eat a megalodon.

Could a Giant Octopus Eat a Megalodon?

In the real world, the notion of a Giant Pacific Octopus consuming a megalodon seems implausible. However Giant Pacific Octopus have been known to eat sharks, just not the size of a Meg of course, or even a great white, but sharks none the less.

However, if we venture into the realm of mythology and propose that a Kraken-like octopus confronted a megalodon, the outcome becomes less clear. The Kraken, with its immense tentacles, could theoretically crush or incapacitate the Meg.

If it was also venomous like the Giant pacific octopus then presuming this venom was stronger and fast acting then it may be able to defeat a megalodon this way if it can get a bite in !

While it would unlikely be top choice for food, the Meg’s robust size and formidable defenses could make it a challenging prey, the fact that octopus currently do catch and eat sharks on occasion make this, if the octopus was truly massive, a possibility,

How Big Would an Octopus have to be to Kill a Megalodon?

A Giant Pacific Octopus at its full recorded size, with an arm span reaching up to 30 feet, is an impressive creature. However, when set against a fully grown megalodon, which could measure up to 60 feet in length, the scale of the challenge becomes clear.

To stand a chance in a physical confrontation with a Meg, an octopus would need to be of truly gigantic proportions.

Given that the colossal squid — the largest known existing cephalopod — has tentacles that can reach up to 40 feet plus long, we have to scale up massively from that.

In our opinion, an octopus large enough to physically compete with a megalodon, we might have to be looking at an octopus with an arm span closer to 120 feet or more, to allow for a body mass capable of wrestling with a creature as heavy as a Meg.

How Big is the Giant Octopus in the Meg 2?

Working out the size and weight of a (not real!) octopus with 120 feet long tentacles involves a great deal of guess work and some maths, as no such creature exists in the known natural world.

We can start by using existing giant octopus species as a starting point, we might make a reasonable guess.

The weight of a creature doesn’t increase linearly with its size, but instead scales with the cube of the size change. This is known as the square-cube law. If you double a creature’s size in each dimension (height, width, and length), you increase its volume and hence its weight eight-fold (since 2^3 = 8).

The Giant Pacific Octopus, the largest octopus species on record, can weigh up to 600 pounds with an arm span of 30 feet. If we scale that up to 120 feet, we’re increasing the linear dimensions by a factor of 4 (since 120/30= 4).

So, to estimate the weight, we cube this scaling factor. That’s 4^3, which equals approximately 64.

Multiplying the original maximum weight of 600 pounds by this factor gives us a rough estimate of the weight of our hypothetical 120-foot octopus:

64 x 600 lbs. = 38,400 pounds, or around 18 tons for the size of the Giant octopus in the Meg 2: the Trench Movie. If based on current known Giant octopus sizes scaled up to 120 feel plus.

Still not as heavy as a megalodon, but with 8 powerful arms, a much larger brain, it definitely gives it a fighting chance against a 60 foot Megalodon!

One thing though, the Megalodon in the movie, one of them at least, appears to be about 100 feet long and as the Movie is called “the Meg 2” I think we can guess how that battle will eventually end!

Conclusion

The idea of a gigantic octopus capable of taking on a megalodon, as depicted in “The Meg 2: The Trench,” is a great, if not unique, idea for a movie. Current sized 30 feet maximum sized octopus would be outmatched is every way by a Megalodon,

However, we have few records of the maximum size of prehistoric Cephalopods or even all of their possible species so who is to say something bigger didn’t exist million of years ago!

And to beat a megalodon, bigger isn’t the right word, it would have to have been a gigantic, monstrous, colossal octopus to have stood a chance against this prehistoric shark.

While we hope still for other marine reptiles to make an appearance rather than the Simosuchus looking ones bounding around the trailer, if a kronosaurus or Liopleurodon do not make it into this movie, there is always the Meg 3 to look forward to!

F.A.Q

1. What is the Kraken?

The Kraken is a legendary sea monster of enormous size, often depicted in Norse mythology and maritime folklore. It’s commonly represented as a giant octopus or squid-like creature that terrorizes sailors, capable of pulling entire ships under the water.

2. Is the Kraken real?

The Kraken is a creature of myth and legend. While there’s no scientific evidence for its existence, some believe that the stories may have been inspired by sightings of real giant cephalopods, like the Giant Squid.

3. What is the largest known octopus?

The largest known octopus is the Giant Pacific Octopus, which can reach an arm span of up to 30 feet and weigh up to 600 pounds.

4. Could a Giant Pacific Octopus fight a Megalodon?

In reality, a Giant Pacific Octopus would be overwhelmingly outmatched in a confrontation with a Megalodon, due to the significant size difference between the two creatures.

5. Could a Kraken fight a Megalodon?

If we’re speaking in terms of legend and myth, a creature as large as the Kraken is often depicted could potentially confront a Megalodon. However, this is purely speculative and based on legend and myths rather than scientific fact.

6. How intelligent are octopuses?

Octopuses are known to be highly intelligent. They have demonstrated problem-solving abilities, can use tools, and some species have shown signs of both short- and long-term memory.

7. Where do Giant Pacific Octopuses live?

Giant Pacific Octopuses are found in the coastal waters of the North Pacific, ranging from southern California to Alaska, and across to Japan and the Korean Peninsula. They typically dwell in rocky areas, and are able to adapt to various depths.

References

Roy Ford

Hi, I am Roy Ford a General Studies and English Teacher who has taught all over the world. What started as a fossil collection became a great way to teach, motivate and inspire students of all ages and all over the world about dinosaurs and from that and children’s love of dinosaurs came the site dinosaur facts for kids, a resource for all ages.