Will There Ever Be Another Jaws Movie?
There are many reasons Jaws 5 will probably never exist, not the least of which is Steven Spielberg. Jaws was an enormous breakout success for Spielberg, now considered a master filmmaker whose talents and skills are on full display in the 1975 classic. It was so hugely popular that it is considered the first blockbuster.
Jaws is a film made by a skilled artist who studied filmmakers like Alfred Hitchcock and obsessively honed his craft from childhood. The same could not be said, however, of its three sequels: the serviceable Jaws 2 (1978), the bombastic Jaws 3-D (1983), and the ridiculous, depressing Jaws: The Revenge (1987).
All of them were made by Universal in an obvious grab for cash, and they increasingly failed to match their progenitor at the box office.
This is one reason another Jaws film is not likely to happen: the spectacular flop of its sequels. Anyone who is old enough to remember Jaws remembers watching the film series fall apart. And they likely have nothing but a bad taste in their mouth for anything beyond maybe the first two, aside from some possible nostalgia for bad movies. Thanks to Jaws, or rather the greed of those who sought to replicate its success, the world is not short on bad shark movies.
From films that tried to capitalize on the success of Jaws shortly after its release like 1981’s The Last Shark, which got into hot (and, we’re guessing, salty) water with Universal’s lawyers, to The Meg and the Sharknado franchise, the world simply does not need any more silly shark movies. At this point, the whole idea of a killer shark movie is largely associated with camp and would have a hard time being taken seriously.
On top of that, Jaws functioned on some pretty poor knowledge of how sharks behave and gave the creatures a bad name they have yet to shake. A new Jaws film would be a prime target for animal rights organizations, and rightly so.
A film that took sharks seriously would have little to portray that echoed the 1975 classic, and a film that played fast and loose with them would be unlikely to be seen as anything but another entry in a tired, dopey genre.
Steven Spielberg has long opposed both any digital retouching or updating of his original film and any remake or reboot
But, as we mentioned, reportedly the biggest reason Universal won’t go back into the water with Jaws is the director himself. Steven Spielberg has long opposed both any digital retouching or updating of his original film and any remake or reboot.
In fact, in 2021, Deadline reported that they had heard Universal had brought up the idea to the director and received “a firm no.” How much control Spielberg has over the fate of the Jaws property is not known. But he seems to hold enough clout to firmly and effectively punch any plans to resurface that particular infamous dorsal fin squarely in the nose.
And it’s easy to forget but at the time, Jaws was a blockbuster of epic proportions. While there had been big flicks before, this one was new—a film that drew crowds, generated buzz, and led to repeat theatrical viewings on a large scale, especially during the summer. It began what is now known as the age of the blockbuster and changed the way studios planned, made, and released films forever.
By now, blockbuster status is something major movies reach for all the time, leaving audiences awash in big, loud, effects-heavy films, all vying for ticket sales. But Jaws is more than big and loud; it’s a real film about human beings in a frightening situation.
It’s about the preservation of life and humanity against an outside threat that encroaches on a time and place that is supposed to be safe, fun, and relaxing, not to mention the politics and bureaucratic greed that further endanger the lives of beachgoers.
In all honesty, Spielberg’s refusal alone should probably be enough to stop any future Jaws film in its tracks. Along with a stellar cast, a stunning score, and the promise of something moviegoers had not yet seen, the real magic of Jaws and the absolute key to its success was Steven Spielberg. He is what every sequel and half-baked knock-off has always lacked, and there is unlikely to be anyone who can catch that lightning in another bottle.
For his part, as early as the opportunity to make Jaws 2, Spielberg said he “could not imagine going back out to the ocean and sitting in a boat for 9 months,” which is definitely understandable. Maybe that’s one reason he instead went on to make Jurassic Park, which he described as “Jaws on land,” and maybe that legendary spiritual follow-up and its mostly quite good sequels should be enough for us.
