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 even published.

Producers Richard D. Zanuck and David Brown discovered the novel thanks to a tip-off in Cosmopolitan magazine. Brown, whose wife Helen Gurley Brown was the editor, found a small card with a plot summary that ended with “might make a good movie.”

After reading it overnight, the two were hooked, calling it ”the most exciting thing they’d ever read.” They bought the film rights in 1973 for $175,000 (about $1.2 million today) and brought Jaws to life.

Interestingly, Spielberg admitted that when he first read the book, he was actually rooting for the shark — because the human characters were so unlikeable!

Stiff drinks and shark drama
Here’s a fun fact: the very first screening of Jaws happened in Dallas. Producer David Brown and Richard Zanuck were initially nervous, fearing audiences might laugh at the mechanical shark.

“We went and had a very stiff drink,” Brown recalled in the 25th-anniversary DVD exploring the making of Jaws.

But as the lights dimmed, their fears quickly vanished. “We went into the theater, and the screams started, and they never stopped. And we were pinching each other. It was incredible.”

Across all its releases, Jaws has earned an impressive $476.5 million worldwide.

Robert Shaw robbed of an Oscar?
Many believe Robert Shaw was robbed of an Oscar for his unforgettable performance in Jaws. From start to finish, every moment he’s on screen, he absolutely owns it. His intensity is almost unbelievable, yet he also brings a surprising depth of emotion when talking about his harrowing experience aboard the USS Indianapolis

The ”USS Indianapolis” speech, where Shaw’s character Quint recounts the traumatic events of the sinking, is one of the most chilling and powerful moments in film history.

Who wrote the USS Indianapolis speech in Jaws?
The debate over who wrote the iconic “USS Indianapolis” speech in Jaws remains unresolved.

While playwright Howard Sackler initially conceived the speech, screenwriter John Milius was asked to expand it, resulting in a 10-page monologue. Director Steven Spielberg credits Milius for the words, but Robert Shaw’s editing made the speech what it is in the film. However, co-screenwriter Carl Gottlieb argues that it was Robert Shaw himself who wrote the final version.

“Somehow, the mythology was that Milius wrote that speech, but there were 10 versions of that speech, including my own,” Gottlieb said.

They gave a version to Robert Shaw, and the actor took it all in and made it his own.

”And one night while we are all at dinner … he came in with a handful of paper and said, ‘I think I have the pesky speech licked,’” Gottlieb recalled. “And he basically performed it for the table. And we all went, ‘Wow.’ And Steven said, ‘That’s what we’re shooting.’”

Delivered the speech while drunk
When it came time to film the famous USS Indianapolis monologue, Shaw attempted to deliver the speech while drunk, thinking the scene, which takes place late at night, called for it.

Unfortunately, nothing from that take could be used. Realizing his mistake, Shaw called Steven Spielberg later that night, expressing regret and asking for another chance. The following day, Shaw delivered the monologue flawlessly in one take, his performance electrifying and haunting, cementing Quint as one of cinema’s most memorable characters.

Robert Shaw & Richard Dreyfuss hated each other
Though widely respected for his talent, Robert Shaw’s struggles with alcohol created tension on set. In later interviews, Roy Scheider described his co-star as ”a perfect gentleman whenever he was sober. All he needed was one drink and then he turned into a competitive son-of-a-bitch.”

Carl Gottlieb’s The Jaws Log reveals that Shaw often had a drink between takes, at one point even admitting, “I wish I could quit drinking.”