Society & Culture · Serial Productions and the New York Times

The Good Whale

by Serial Productions and the New York Times

Fans of the movie “Free Willy” are outraged to learn that the real whale who played Willy lives in a tiny pool at an amusement park in Mexico City. So well-intentioned experts embark on an epic science experiment to try to teach one celebrity orca how to be free — while the world watches. Sign up for our newsletter to see photos and videos of Keiko, and get a behind the scenes look at the making of The Good Whale. Sign up at nytimes.com/serialnewsletter Subscribers to the New York Times can listen to all episodes of The Good Whale, and access the full archive of other Serial Productions and New York Times podcasts on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Subscribe at nytimes.com/podcasts Have a story pitch, a tip, or feedback on The Good Whale or other shows from Serial Productions? Email us at serialshows@nytimes.com

What listeners say

A curated, balanced selection of Apple Podcasts reviews.

Appreciate the objective journalism of Keiko’s story. Felt so many emotions while listening. Short, informative episodes. I hope we can eventually live in a society where animals can not be put into captivity for entertainment.

RainbowVegan9 · Dec 2024

As a kid who grew up loving “Free Willy” and sea life, this was so emotional to listen to! Beautifully told and well produced. Highly recommend listening!

michruby · Dec 2024

This story made me laugh, cry and feel just about every other emotion in between. Everyone should hear Keiko’s story. The writing in this series is beautiful and a perfect concoction of the science and the humanity involved in freeing Keiko.

Grackie18 · Dec 2024

This series shows so clearly why there should be a ban on dolphin and whale captivity in the USA. The best life for these magnificent mammals is in the wild.

ycjih · Dec 2024

I really wanted to like this story. I live in the PWN and love Orcas. This was an interesting story but could have been done in less episodes. The host spends too much time personifying Keiko. It also felt like they were reaching for something important to say or express about conservation and our obsession with capturing animals but it never really got there. In my opinion not worth listening to all 6 episodes.

Nijs11 · Dec 2024

I am struggling to stay interested. Great sounds, nice interviews but I am finding it difficult to keep listening/coming back to this series. Radiolab would have dedicated just an episode, it feels dragged out.

Ma Raney’s Big Phat Bottom · Nov 2024

We strive to present a balanced view by showing a diverse range of reviews from Apple Podcasts.