Jaws became one of Steven Spielberg’s biggest hits with the movie turning out to be an epic cult classic. The movie might be one of the rare few that made it on everyone’s watchlist at least once in their lives. Not only did it skyrocket in the theatres but it also led to the rise of an entire series of movies following the events of Jaws.
Now that the movie has lived through almost half a century, it would be just the right time to celebrate 48 years since the movie was first released. Spielberg had a lot to say about the film. However, not all of it was positive. The movie was based on a book written by Peter Benchley, who had the same concerns the director had.
Steven Spielberg Was Not Happy With The Impact That Jaws Had
When Jaws was first released, Steven Spielberg had no idea of the impact it would have on the people and the shark population in general. Sharks became more than just creatures who were living their own lives. They became trophies for hunters, fishermen, and poachers.
“I truly and to this day regret the decimation of the shark population because of the book and the film,” Spielberg added. “I really, truly regret that.”
The shark population started depleting drastically and Spielberg had no control over it. All he could do was watch just how his movie was being perceived. He even admitted that if there was any reason as to why he would be scared of sharks, it would be because of what humans did after watching his movie and after reading Peter Benchley’s book. It was more about how they would be both angry and disappointed at him for putting an entire species at risk and turning their lives into a sport because of a movie he put his all into.
Jaws Author Regretted Writing The Book Because Of Its Impact
Before Peter Benchley had passed away, he could see just what his novel had led to and he was far from proud of it. He even decided to step forward to clarify just how sharks can be in reality and that his book was nothing more than a work of fiction.
“Knowing what I know now, I could never write that book today. Sharks don’t target human beings, and they certainly don’t hold grudges.”
Not only that, but he also confirmed that had he been bestowed with the knowledge he holds now, he would never have written Jaws. His intention had been to bring focus to the lives of sharks and make them popular not for hunting but to be understood more. He wanted more care put into the environment. However, the exact opposite of that took place.
Source: Collider
