By Victoria Davis, staff writer & journalist

While B monster movies may not be considered “high-class” cinema, there’s no point in denying that they are well loved. Since Steven Spielberg ignited the golden age of shark movies in 1975, viewers have been hooked on bloody underwater attacks and heroic life raft escapes. As a tribute to the six Sharknado films produced by Asylum Entertainment, Sharknado Week will be kick-started with Asylum’s latest: Megalodon. This is not only a cinematic reward for scary shark movie enthusiasts, but also for the film’s star, Dominic Pace.

An Ossining native, and coincidentally born the same year that Jaws released in theaters, Pace’s acting career has been most noted by his recurring roles on NBC’s hit comedy, Superstore, ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel live and his appearances on countless television crime shows over the past 20 years. But now, Pace is reaping what he’s sewn, being rewarded with his first Top Billed Role in Megalodon.

“I’m very grateful to have grown up in Ossining,” said Pace in an interview with Ossining Patch. “We weren’t a Participation Trophy Town which is the reason why I have been able to endure the ups and downs of this business. From sports to academics, to the parents. There was no ‘sugar coating’ life. It kept kids grounded, and it gave you tough skin. To understand that this world, or Hollywood doesn’t owe you a thing, but that you have to go out and earn it.”

Director James Thomas’ thriller will put Pace, playing U.S. Navy Captain Jack Streeper, against the Russian Navy, while also dealing with a 150-foot shark, of course. Pace says that this film is not as “campy” as Sharknado, and that as much fun as it would be to “wield a chainsaw machine gun,” he was grateful Thomas made this film a little more grounded. 

“Sometimes sci-fi films, I feel like they have a little bit of a bad habit in terms of just being on the surface, and the one thing that was great about this was all five/six leading characters had a lot of depth to them,” said Pace in an interview with Rich Girl Network TV. “It wasn’t so much about not only the relationships, but were also carrying the honor of not only the United States Navy but also the Russian Navy. So, to me that had a lot of texture and I was honored to be a part of it.”

Megalodon will air Monday, August 13 on SyFy at 8 p.m., PST.