The ground-breaking success of Jaws overcame a lot of obstacles, including two cast members who hated each other. While not his first movie, Jaws helped to launch the directing career of Steven Spielberg while also becoming known as the first summer blockbuster ever. Not only was the movie a financial success, but it was nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars and is now regarded as one of the best movies of all time.
The success is all the more impressive considering that the troubled production of Jaws is the stuff of Hollywood legend. The constant delays, going over-budget, and a malfunctioning shark were only the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the movie’s many dilemmas. However, a feud between two of the stars of the movie created a considerable amount of tension, but also ended up adding to the brilliance of the movie in the end.
Richard Dreyfuss And Robert Shaw’s Feud Is Clear In Their First Jaws Scene Together
Hooper And Quint’s First Interaction Is Filled With Tension
While Roy Scheider leads the cast of Jaws as the grounded hero, Chief Martin Brody, he is also joined by two key cast members, with Richard Dreyfuss as marine biologist Matt Hooper and Robert Shaw as shark hunter Quint. It is not until the third act of the movie that Hooper and Quint finally meet, and there is immediate animosity between the characters.
The two actors came from different eras of movie-making, and their different personalities did not mesh well when making the movie.
Quint insults Hooper as a soft academic type who cannot cut it out on the high seas, while Hooper is unimpressed with Quint’s “working class hero” persona and is keen to prove him wrong. When Quint challenges Hooper to tie a knot with some rope, Hooper does it and throws the rope in Quint’s face, only for the shark hunter to show no inkling of respect and only further hatred.
Watching this scene in Jaws unfold, it is not at all surprising to learn that Dreyfuss and Shaw did not get along at all. The two actors came from different eras of movie-making, and their different personalities did not mesh well when making the movie. The behind-the-scenes documentary Jaws: The Inside Story detailed accounts from others who worked on the movie and the truth behind the feud. While Shaw had pᴀssed away before and couldn’t give his version of the story, he was seen as an agitator by many and picked on Dreyfuss in a similar way to how Quint targeted Hooper.
There were stories about Shaw insulting Dreyfuss’ weight and trying to humiliate him by challenging him to various physical activities. It was also noted that Dreyfuss was annoyed with Shaw’s excessive drinking while filming, leading to a tense confrontation when Dreyfuss threw Shaw’s bottle of liquor overboard. By all accounts, the tense relationship between Dreyfuss and Shaw was a constant issue throughout the filming of Jaws.
The Tension Between Hooper And Quint Actually Elevates Jaws’ Final Act
The Feud Helped Make Hoopper And Quint More Interesting Characters
Certainly, the feud between Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw added to the issues on the set of Jaws. However, Steven Spielberg proved himself as a director when making this movie, partially because of his ability to turn these issues into benefits for the movie itself. Similar to how the malfunctioning shark forced Spielberg to hide the creature from the audience and thus make it more menacing, the tension between Dreyfuss and Shaw helped to make the final act of Jaws all the more entertaining.
The third act of the movie suddenly changed to an adventure movie with Brody, Hooper, and Quint heading out onto the water to hunt the shark. The success of this shift relies on the audience wanting to spend time with these characters. While Brody cemented himself as a hero we want to cheer for, these scenes were a chance for Hooper and Quint to become more interesting characters. The fighting between them allowed their personalities and flaws to come out, while also making it more impactful when they were on the same page.
Despite Brody’s heroics, he was largely useless on the boat, while Quint and Hooper were confident and worked in unison when they had to. Quint’s famous USS Indianapolis speech in Jaws is also heightened as it is a moment that Hooper understands this frustrating man more. These character moments amid all the thrills are part of what made Jaws more than just a shark movie and elevated it to the status of a true cinematic masterpiece.
