Great filmmakers say the darnedest things.
One of the most iconic, frightening images in the history of cinema has to be the first time the shark in 1975’s Jaws is seen on screen. And yet the director behind that summer blockbuster once thought his mechanical marvel was “dumb”.
Steven Spielberg–the Oscar-winning filmmaker responsible for such instant classics as E.T., Raiders of the Lost Ark, Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Jurassic Park, Saving Private Ryan and Schindler’s List-–said during a recent interview with W Magazine that he “never would have guessed so many people would have gone to see Jaws. In my mind, the shark looked dumb.”
The director said that, when he attended the film’s first preview in Dallas, “and people were screaming and popcorn was flying at the screen, my first feeling was, ‘Oh, my God!’ I didn’t think any of this was going to work. The truth is, you never, ever know.”
As all horror fans know, Jaws–based on the Peter Benchley novel–stars Roy Scheider as Police Chief Martin Brody, Richard Dreyfuss as marine biologist Matt Hooper and Richard Shaw as shark hunter Quint.
Their quest to catch and kill the 25-foot great white terrorizing Amity Island is the focal point of one of the greatest films ever made. And moviegoers responded by plunking down a cool $477 million at the box office.
Keep reading Horror News Network for everything Jaws.
