Jaws (1975)
Jaws is a 1975 horror movie directed by Steven Spielberg, with a running time of 2h 4m. It stars Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss.
A great white shark turns the water off Amity Island into a killing ground, and the summer crowds keep coming anyway. Steven Spielberg's 1975 thriller pins its terror on what you cannot see: a fin, a shadow, John Williams' two-note pulse. Police chief Martin Brody, an outsider afraid of the ocean, wants the beaches closed while the mayor wants tourist dollars. As the attacks mount, Brody joins marine biologist Matt Hooper and salty shark hunter Quint aboard a too-small boat to hunt the thing down. Adapted from Peter Benchley's novel, it built the modern summer blockbuster.
Quick answers
What is Jaws about?
A great white shark turns the water off Amity Island into a killing ground, and the summer crowds keep coming anyway. Steven Spielberg's 1975 thriller pins its terror on what you cannot see: a fin, a shadow, John Williams' two-note pulse. Police chief Martin Brody, an outsider afraid of the ocean, wants the beaches closed while the mayor wants tourist dollars. As the attacks mount, Brody joins marine biologist Matt Hooper and salty shark hunter Quint aboard a too-small boat to hunt the thing down. Adapted from Peter Benchley's novel, it built the modern summer blockbuster.
When was Jaws released?
Jaws was released on 20 June 1975.
How long is Jaws?
Jaws runs 2h 4m.
Who made Jaws?
Jaws was directed by Steven Spielberg.
Where can I watch Jaws?
Jaws is available on Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus, YouTube TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store and Fandango At Home.
Where to watch Jaws
Stream: Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus, YouTube TV
Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home, Google Play Movies, YouTube
Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home, Google Play Movies, YouTube
Official site
Cast
- Roy Scheider as Brody
- Robert Shaw as Quint
- Richard Dreyfuss as Hooper
- Lorraine Gary as Ellen Brody
- Murray Hamilton as Vaughn
- Carl Gottlieb as Meadows
- Jeffrey Kramer as Hendricks
- Susan Backlinie as Chrissie
- Jonathan Filley as Cassidy
- Ted Grossman as Estuary Victim
- Chris Rebello as Michael Brody
- Jay Mello as Sean Brody
Similar movies
Explore Jaws guides
Jaws in our writing
- Companion guide: Deep Sea
- Companion guide: Killer Sharks & Creature Features
A few thoughts on Jaws
For more animal-versus-town dread, Goosebumps: Deep Trouble sends R.L. Stine's scares underwater with a captive shark. The game BioShock trades open ocean for a drowned city where menace waits past every window. On TV, FROM strands a community against predators it cannot outrun, keeping Jaws' terror-of-the-unseen alive.
Terror lurking beneath the waves
Jaws made the open water itself the monster, a fin and a shadow enough to empty a beach. These films chase the same aquatic dread: divers, swimmers, and boats stalked by something with teeth. From sequels to fresh deep-sea nightmares, each understands that the scariest part of the ocean is not being able to see.
Nature turns predator on land
Jaws is the blueprint for creature survival: ordinary people versus an animal that will not stop. These films move the hunt onto land and river, pitting humans against beasts, wolves, and things that should not exist. Each shares the primal engine of Jaws, the moment prey realizes it has become the hunted.
Contained dread where the threat stays unseen
Jaws built its scares on suggestion, keeping the shark offscreen so imagination did the work. These thrillers use the same restraint: a threat you sense before you see it, a trap with no easy way out. Each proves, like Jaws, that dread withheld is far more frightening than dread revealed.
Horror novels that keep the pages turning
Jaws began as Peter Benchley's bestseller before Spielberg ever cast a shark. For readers who want that same page-turning fear, these novels deliver it in ink: cursed towns, sinister institutes, and quiet houses hiding something monstrous. Each supplies the slow-building unease Jaws made famous, no screen required.