He was featured in the Academy Award–winning film The Cove (2009), which used covert techniques to expose the yearly dolphin drive hunting that goes on in Taiji, Japan.

O'Barry has since released over twenty-five captive dolphins in Haiti, Colombia, Guatemala, Nicaragua, Brazil, The Bahamas and the United States.

[7] O'Barry resigned from his position at the Earth Island Institute in September 2014, due to disagreements with its management regarding the acceptance of funds from the tuna industry, and its use of Fish Aggregation Devices.

https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyle/bali-hosts-first-centre-to-return-captive-dolphins-to-the-wild-idUSKBN2491R3/ O'Barry was featured in the Academy Award–winning feature-length documentary The Cove, directed by Louie Psihoyos which investigates links between the killing, capture, trade and display of dolphins all over the world.

[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22] O’Barry and his son, Lincoln, created the television series Blood Dolphin$ for Discovery Channel's Animal Planet, which continues on where The Cove left off.