Rare footage of giant ‘eerie’ underwater creature leaves people 'absolutely terrified' of deep sea

Footage captured by divers has, once again, reminded us why it's totally normal to freak out when something brushes past you in the open ocean.

Unlike your average hotel swimming pool - where the worst thing that could happen is getting whacked by someone's inflatable lilo - heading out into the ocean can be pretty daunting.

You may find yourself invited in by the sparkling blue water or prospect of seeing rare fish while snorkelling, but there's also a large number of unknowns to contend with when entering the seven seas.

Many people have had their holidays derailed by stepping on jellyfish or being swept out by strong currents.

And that's not even factoring in your odds of encountering a shark, or any of the other mysterious creatures that inhabit the world's oceans.

Now that's one big squid (Newsflare)

All in all, it's no surprise why so many people are left feeling a bit creeped out by the ocean.

If thalassophobia's your thing, then you might want to look away now, as a pair of divers were able to capture footage of a rarely seen eight-foot (2.5-metre) giant squid while swimming off the west coast of Japan.

Captured in 2023 by diving instructor Yosuke Tanaka and his wife, Miki, while swimming off the coast of Toyooka city, Hyogo Prefecture, the footage shows the pair encountering the absolutely massive creature while swimming underwater.

Check out the footage below to see the creature in all it's eerie glory:

At first the clip doesn't seem to be showing anything that's particularly out of the ordinary, just a big squid swimming about, right?

However, the above illusions are shattered when you notice one of the couple in the background behind the creature that you're truly able to grasp that this is one pretty big squid.

After all, the average height of an adult man is 5'9" (175.3 cm) while women of the world come in at an average of 5'3" (160.0 cm).

Preferring more temperate waters, giant squids can be found all over the world. However it is rare to see them out in the ocean.

One of the divers can be seen in the bottom right corner (Newsflare)

Speaking about encountering the squid, Tanaka told AFP (via Science Alert) that while the creature appeared to be moving 'very sluggishly' he wouldn't want to be grabbed by one of its tentacles.

"I could see its tentacles moving. I thought it would be dangerous to be grabbed hard by them and taken off somewhere," he said.

"It was very exciting. I think there is nothing rarer than this."