That One Time When Steven Spielberg Crossed The Line While Filming Jaws
Steven Spielberg is a genius who is willing to go to extreme lengths for the sake of his movies.
Jaws, directed by the incredible Steven Spielberg, is a classic American horror thriller released in 1975. It tells the gripping story of a small coastal town called Amity which is plagued by a man-eating great white shark. The movie made Spielberg a household name and had a profound impact on the film industry.
Often credited with creating the concept of the summer blockbuster, Jaws quickly became a cultural phenomenon. The film broke numerous box office records at the time. It was praised for its innovative filmmaking techniques, suspenseful storytelling, and memorable score composed by John Williams.
Three sequels followed the film's success: Jaws 2 (1978), Jaws 3-D (1983), and Jaws: The Revenge (1987), although none recaptured the original's critical acclaim or box office success.
At a time when people didn't know what CGI was or how to make a movie, especially one so different from any other, it could be a hell of a ride. Working with a modest $9 million budget, Steven Spielberg put extreme effort to make Jaws what it became.
The astounding success of the movie, which grossed $476.5 million at the box office, is a testament to his dedication and the enduring buzz surrounding the behind-the-scenes stories.
Not only did the director insist on filming the iron sharks in the Atlantic Ocean instead of a North Hollywood tank, and adding a severed head scene with a prosthetic head to heighten a jump scare, but he also once "buried" his crew member for the realism of that one scene.
Spielberg wanted a more realistic look for a scene where Chrissie Watkins is dead, so he used a crew member to help him with the process. So he basically buried a crew member in the sand and taped her hand to Chrissie's hand, which resulted in a scene that looked real on the big screen.
Steven Spielberg's unique and sometimes dangerous filmmaking methods are the main reason why the director and his works remain iconic to this day. Even after decades, Jaws remains a milestone in filmmaking and is considered one of the greatest movies ever made, making the directors name the most honorable in Hollywood.