MOVIE NEWS – Spielberg had to cut a moment from the memorable death scene in Jaws because it was too horrific.

Jaws would have been even darker if it had included the gruesome scene where the victim vomits blood while hanging in Jaws’s mouth. Spielberg, the director of the film, decided to cut the scene as he found it too gory and scary compared to the rest of the film. The gruesome scene would have been witnessed by a child, which would have added to the overall horror and dark mood of the film.

If that particular scene had not been so brutal originally, then perhaps Jaws would have been even darker. A shark gets loose and terrorizes innocent people, and a team of a police officer, a biologist, and a shark hunter hunt down Jaws. Jaws features several gory scenes as Jaws rips Cape Cod residents to shreds, creating a new fear of the ocean and setting off a summer blockbuster trend.

In an interview with Vanity Fair, Steven Spielberg revealed that he had to change one of the iconic death scenes in which Jaws attacks its victims in the estuary. Spielberg explained how brutal the scene where Jaws kills a scout leader played by Teddy Grossman, witnessed by a child among others, was, which he said ultimately went too far. See the quote below:

“I cut the scene because it was too bloody, too gory. Teddy Grossman played the victim as a stuntman – and Teddy is a very humorous character, by the way – but he was originally riding in the mouth of Jaws as a boat’s maidenhead, riding in the water towards the child, vomiting blood. It was more horrifying than anything else that happened in the first third of the film, so I took it out.”

How did Spielberg cut Jaws’s estuary scene?

Jaws’s estuary scene is the first time viewers actually see Jaws in action. The tension builds throughout the scene as peaceful moments in the water turn into a brutal attack. Jaws overturns two boats, tears off a man’s leg and leaves a pool of blood in its wake, which, along with Chrissie Watkins’ death in the opening scene and Quint’s death, is one of the film’s most memorable scenes as it confronts Jaws at the climax.

If Spielberg had included the original cut of the throat attack in Jaws, it would have completely defeated the purpose of the scene for some viewers. The image of the man vomiting blood from the mouth of Jaws does not suggest a restrained attack that is given the dignity the attack deserves, but rather a display of horror for horror’s sake. This would have been a significant departure from the tone of the first act, and too absurd to be truly appreciated.

Jaws itself inspired a deep fear of sharks, and even Spielberg openly regrets that Jaws has drastically reduced the number of sharks. Since people already feel a terrible fear of shark attacks, increasing the horror of Jaws would have only worsened the real impact of the film. While it would have been interesting to see Spielberg’s original ideas for the attack, both Jaws,

Source: Screenrant