Free Willy 3: The Rescue (1997) is a family adventure directed by Sam Pillsbury and starring Jason James Richter, August Schellenberg and Annie Corley. In this installment, Jesse returns as a research assistant working to protect whales alongside his old friend Randolph. When they uncover an illegal whaling operation, Jesse teams up with the ship captains young son to stop the poachers and save Willy once more.