In the world of entertainment, everything Ryan Seacrest touches seems to turn to gold, from hosting “American Idol” to his top-rated New Year’s Eve countdown every year, to turning the Kardashians into one of the world’s most famous families.
But can Seacrest’s success translate to other pursuits, like fishing off the coast of California over the weekend? On October 18, 2026, the star took fans on a deep dive into how he spent his Saturday, with social media photos and videos of a fishing expedition near Catalina Island, about 22 miles east of Los Angeles.
Seems Seacrest, 52, had quite the successful trip, as one of the videos showed him and several expert fishermen reeling in a giant catch. They later said it was a 130-pound striped marlin, but many fans were confused, wondering why Seacrest didn’t even show a photo of the enormous fish he caught.
Ryan Seacrest Says They ‘Obviously’ Let His Marlin Go
Seacrest noted in the first video of his post that he would definitely need help out on the open sea, given that he had very little fishing experience. He recalled a couple of fishing trips as a kid, off the coast of Florida with his dad.
In a separate video, he could be seen at the back of the boat, straining to hang on to his fishing rod due to the strength of the fish that had grabbed his bait. The video cut off before the fish could be seen.
“Alright, so we let him go, obviously,” Seacrest said in the next video, and one of the fishermen helping him said, “One striped marlin, about 130 pounds.” Seacrest then kept jokingly increasing the suspected weight of the marlin, settling on 192 pounds. But many fans thought it was, well, fishy that they didn’t get to see Seacrest’s catch.
One commented, “I guess I’m not understanding.. you went fishing, don’t show any fish let alone eating any fish??🤷🏽♀️”
Another wrote, “🤔Wait…we see the pumped arm, celebratory lamb chops, but no pics of the big fat 🐟(released) fish of questionable size?!? 😋😄”
Someone else chimed in, “I wanna see what kind of fish you caught!” while another lamented, “Well you should’ve got a quick picture. How exciting tho”
Ryan Seacrest’s Marlin Could Have Died Outside of the Water
Many fans who complained about not seeing Seacrest’s impressive catch likely missed a split-second detail that ended the video of him reeling in the marlin. The fisherman who estimated its 130-pound weight can be seen quickly snipping the line to free the marlin, which is a member of the billfish family.
Right before the video cuts off, Seacrest can be heard saying, “That’s it? I don’t get to see?”
Pulling a marlin from the water and “into a world with no oxygen after an exhausting fight can be deadly,” according to The Billfish Foundation. In addition, they have an “exterior coating that protects them from disease, which can easily be rubbed off when pulled onto a boat and handled.” When that happens, their diminished immune system can cause the marlin to die within several days.
The risk is so serious that there are federal regulations around the proper handling of billfish, including the striped marlin. risk is so great that proper handling is a federal regulation. The National Marine Fisheries Service strongly urges the immediate release of billfish, and the Federal Register says, “If a billfish is caught by a hook and not retained, the fish must be released by cutting the line near the hook or by using a dehooking device, in either case without removing the fish from the water.”
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Ryan Seacrest Catches Massive Marlin Off California Coast, But Fans Think Something’s Fishy About His Post