10 Fascinating Behind The Scenes Facts About Jaws

George Lucas got his noggin stuck in the mouth of a shark, and Brody got slapped a lot on set…

Jaws Steven Spielberg
Universal Pictures

Once one of the highest-grossing films in the history of cinema, Jaws made some waves in the movie industry and propelled Spielberg's career right to the top. Although this film was met with great applause and considered a massive success for the young filmmaker, it was not smooth sailing for the director and crew involved.

Famously, Jaws had more than its fair share of hiccups; from stressed-out directors to actors who weren't totally on board. Take a deep dive into the making of the movie, and you'll soon come across a few funny stories from the cast and crew.

Whether looking at the choice in music, the prop design or the choice of location, this film is considered one of the greats. But what if you were to find out that a lot of the elements that make the film so iconic were actually a result of countless mistakes made during the filming process? Spielberg had a vision for the film, which ultimately came true. Well, bar the use of real-life sharks...

Here are ten behind the scenes facts about Jaws that everyone talked about back in 1975.

10. The Crew Referred To The Film As FLAWS Due To Constant Setbacks

Jaws Steven Spielberg
Universal Pictures

According to Richard Dreyfuss, when production for the film began, there was no script, no cast and no shark. Known for being one of Spielberg's most troublesome shoots, there were often moments when it looked as though the movie would never really hoist anchor and set off.

Bar the major flaws that have their own entries on this list, and there were a few minor hiccups which still deserve some airtime. Did you know that even though the original shooting schedule was 58 days, Spielberg managed to take up a whole 159 days while creating the masterpiece? During the final shark battle, Roy Scheider also decked Joe Alves while stabbing the prop shark. The crew were tasked with painting the Orca II with seagull poop. No wonder they had a little dig at Spielberg every now and then.

The mechanical shark had plenty of issues that you'll hear about later, but to preface it all, you should know that Spielberg would refer to the great white lookalike as the "Great White Turd" when it decided to act up. When it wasn't acting up, the crew normally referred to the shark as "Bruce".

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