Deleted Jaws scene: The shark attack you never saw

Who doesn’t love Jaws? This 1975 classic has terrified swimmers for decades and remains one of the greatest thrillers ever made. But while the movie made a splash with its suspenseful storytelling, did you know it’s also swimming with little-known bloopers and fascinating behind-the-scenes mishaps?

And here’s the kicker — a deleted scene exists that most fans have never seen. It involves a moment so chilling it might have outdone the shark itself. Curious? Let’s dive in!

I’ve watched Jaws at least 50 times, and every single viewing still leaves me in awe. But if you were a kid in 1975, you had to muster the courage to watch the movie – that’s if your parents even let you go in the first place.

Looking at it nowadays, it feels like they just don’t make films like this anymore — films cast so perfectly, with heart, passion, and a mission to give the audience an unforgettable experience above all else.

Thank you, Steven Spielberg, for giving us a treasure trove of timeless classics that all began with this groundbreaking masterpiece.

Even a masterpiece like Jaws has its imperfections — after all, nobody’s perfect — but some of these quirks have only enhanced its legendary status.

The truth behind the iconic line

There are countless unforgettable scenes in Jaws, but one that stands out is when Chief Brody (Roy Scheider) is chumming the water to lure the shark. Suddenly, Jaws makes a chilling appearance, startling Brody and prompting his now-iconic line: “You’re gonna need a bigger boat.”

But when Jaws was first test-screened, everyone in the audience was so startled by the shark’s appearance that they were still screaming when Scheider dropped his iconic line. Because Speilberg didn’t want real audiences to miss the line, he & the editors extended the scene enough for people to settle back down and start paying attention again after seeing the shark; he also raised the volume of Scheider’s voice for good measure.

According to writer Carl Gottlieb, Roy Scheider also ad-libbed the iconic line ”You’re gonna need a bigger boat,” which only adds to the goosebumps-inducing magic of that scene.

John Williams eerie music

Composer John Williams’ eerie music made the movie a timeless classic.

But when Williams first played his score for Jaws to director Steven Spielberg, Spielberg couldn’t help but laugh, saying, “That’s funny, John, really; but what did you really have in mind for the theme of Jaws?”

Little did Spielberg know, that simple, iconic two-note tune would become a game-changer. Spielberg later admitted that without Williams’s score, the movie would have been only half as successful. And for Williams? It was the start of a legendary career.

Spielberg was rooting for the shark

Jaws was actually based on Peter Benchley’s 1974 novel, but what’s even more surprising is how the film rights were snagged before the book was evenContinue reading…