The Drama That Nearly Sank 'Jaws'

“Jaws” proved to be an instant hit upon its debut in 1975, as it terrified moviegoers with its blood-chilling depiction of a shark hunt in the harsh waters of New England.

However, the Steven Spielberg-helmed project has also become notorious for its troubled production in the years since its debut.

To mark the 50th anniversary of the movie’s release, we’re taking a look back at the worst of the problems that the “Jaws” cast faced on set … as well as the drama between Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw that nearly doomed the film’s production.

Although Spielberg went on to achieve fame and fortune as a filmmaker, he was still in the early stages of his career when “Jaws” went into production … and he wasn’t one of the first choices to direct the project.

The film’s producers initially eyed veteran director John Sturges to lead the film’s production, although they eventually went with Dick Richards. Richards was subsequently replaced by Spielberg for repeatedly referring to the movie’s shark as a whale.

Writing the film’s screenplay also proved to be a difficult process, as it went through several revisions prior to the start of shooting.

Spielberg ultimately resorted to having the script revised during filming, with some scenes drafted the night before a scheduled shooting date.

Once the cast and crew of “Jaws” had been assembled, Spielberg was faced with the question of where to film the movie.

While many older films centered on the sea had been filmed on sets and in tanks, the director made the unorthodox choice of shooting much of the film in the open ocean off the coast of Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts.

Spielberg’s decision meant that the project’s crew members had to deal with particularly harsh weather and rough ocean conditions during filming.

At one point, one of the boats commissioned for the production accidentally sank after a speedboat that had been hauling the vessel pulled away a portion of its planking.

The mechanical sharks used during shooting were also subject to frequent malfunctions, which only added to the sense of frustration felt by the project’s cast and crew.

As a result of the issues experienced during production, the budget of the film ballooned far beyond what the producers had originally set for the project.

The tension on the film’s set was only exacerbated by the feud between Dreyfuss and Shaw — who costarred as oceanographer Matt Hooper and shark-hunter Quint, respectively.

While Shaw was an established actor with a background in theater, his costar had predominantly acted in TV shows, which deepened the divide between the two.

The pair — whose characters in the film were already at odds over their approach to taking on the bloodthirsty shark plaguing residents of Amity Island — often clashed onscreen and off, as exemplified by a scene in which Shaw tried to strangle Dreyfuss.

Shaw’s son Ian, who wrote a stage play centered on the relationship of the film’s stars during the production of “Jaws,” recently spoke to USA Today and claimed the pair’s antagonistic relationship “did get to those sorts of levels.”

Ian also spoke about an instance where his father “fired a fire extinguisher” at Dreyfuss during a take, which had been entirely unplanned.

He later stated that the point of no return between the two men was reached when the “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” star threw a glass of Shaw’s liquor overboard during filming.

Shaw struggled with alcoholism throughout his life, and Ian claimed that, while Dreyfuss may have been attempting to stifle his father’s drinking problem, the irate actor “wanted to fight” his costar.

“Jaws” eventually made its official debut in the summer of 1975 and proved to be a smash hit, as it earned more than $477 million worldwide, according to Box Office Mojo.

The feature was also received well by critics, and it was put up for four Academy Awards … winning three Oscars.

A series of sequels to “Jaws” were produced in the years following the original’s release, although Spielberg, Dreyfuss and Shaw weren’t involved with any of the features.

Ian has since stated he feels as if his father privately harbored a sense of respect for his costar and wanted Dreyfuss to focus on honing his craft, as opposed to building his public profile.