SeaWorld ‘Blackfish’ Lawsuit: Theme Park Agrees To $65 Million Settlement

SeaWorld (SEAS) has reportedly agreed to pay $65 million as part of a settlement that claimed it deceived investors about the impact the documentary “Blackfish” had on its theme park attendance.

The class-action lawsuit claimed that SeaWorld acknowledged that decreasing park attendance was a result of the negative publicity it received after “Blackfish” came out. The 2013 documentary took a look at SeaWorld’s treatment of killer whales.

SeaWorld said the settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing, which comes a week before the jury trial was to begin, the New York Times reported. The entertainment company will fund the settlement with $45.5 million in insurance proceeds and $19.5 million in cash from SeaWorld, the news outlet said.

Under the lawsuit, shareholders saw SeaWorld stock drop nearly 33% in one day, after company executives claimed that park attendance had fallen from the impact of the documentary in 2014, the Times said. SeaWorld called the suit meritless, reportedly saying there was no evidence that is didn’t disclose internal information.

Shares of SeaWorld stock were up 1.03% as of 11:40 p.m. EST on Wednesday.