In 1964, 8 - year - old Allen Bauer (David Kreps) is vacationing with his family near Cape Cod. While taking a sight - seeing tour on a small boat, he sees something below the ocean surface that fascinates him. Allen jumps into the water, even though he can not swim. He grasps the hands of a girl (Shayla Mackarvich) who is inexplicably under the water with him and an instant connection forms between the two. Allen can now breathe under water as he is in the hands of a mermaid. However, Allen is pulled to the surface by the deck hands and the two are separated, though apparently no one else sees the girl. Allen comes to believe the encounter was a near - death hallucination, but his bond with the mermaid proves so strong that his subsequent relationships with women fail as he subconsciously seeks the connection he felt with the mermaid.
who played the little girl mermaid in splash
Shayla Mackarvich