Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story is a documentary celebrating the 50 years since the world's greatest shark movie was released in the US on June 20 1975.
Featuring the director Steven Spielberg and cast such as Lorraine Gary (Ellen Brody in the film) it gives fans of the film an inside look at all the chaos and creativity behind the making of the movie which was based on the bestselling novel Jaws by the late Peter Benchley.
Full of brand-new interviews with the director, cast, crew, filmmakers and shark advocates, this special birthday documentary captures the full creative and cultural shockwaves behind Jaws, which was the first-ever summer blockbuster.
Here's everything you need to know about Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story...
Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story release date
Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story is a 90-minute documentary that will be shown in the US on National Geographic and Hulu on Thursday, July 10 2025.
It will be shown a day later in the UK on Friday, July 11 2025 at 8pm as part of National Geographic's annual Shark Week, and will also be streamed on Disney Plus from that date.
Is there a trailer?
Yes, Nat Geo has released a trailer for Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story which you can watch below to get you into the mood...
Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story — what's shown in the documentary
Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story has plenty never-before-seen footage from Steven Spielberg and Peter Benchley’s personal archives, including home videos and lots of rare outtakes.
The movie's award-winning director Steven Spielberg, will be telling the story that launched his career into the stratosphere and earned him final cut on the film, which means creative control for the last 50 years.
Steven recounts how the production became high-stakes as it was beset with difficulties, from a malfunctioning mechanical shark that was nicknamed "Bruce" and many weather delays to his own post-production PTSD and fears the film would end his career.
The documentary also reexamines the infamous "Jaws effect", unleashing a wave of shark fear, but also an enduring respect for the ocean’s top predator.
With home footage and photos from his personal archives Spielberg reflects on how shooting mid-ocean, never-ending issues with the mechanical shark and tensions between lead actors Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw meant the film went wildly over schedule and over budget – and even threatened to end his career.
"My instincts told me the film needed authenticity, so it needed to be out to sea on location," says Spielberg, now 78. "But we were way out of our element. We were on the ocean for almost five months, and we all began going off the deep end, literally. It was very hard being out on the real ocean, being knocked around by the waves, by the currents. ‘Then on top of all tha,t 80 per cent of the time the shark didn’t work. It was really demoralising and I was terrified I was going to be fired. All I thought about was going home.’
Yet the tale of a great white shark terrorising the small island of Amity became an instant box office smash and it still remains a cult classic 50 years later.
But despite the film’s box office triumph Spielberg admits he suffered from panic attacks for years afterwards. "I had a really tough time when I finished the movie. The success of Jaws was fantastic but it didn’t stop me waking up in the middle of the night in a cold sweat,’ he says. ‘We didn’t have the words PTSD in those days but I had consistent nightmares about directing Jaws for years afterwards. It was a life-altering experience. On the one hand it was traumatising, but I also owe everything to Jaws. It’s the film I thought would end my career, but it actually began it."
Who appears in Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story
In addition to Steven Spielberg, the documentary includes exclusive interviews from original cast and crew – including Joe Alves (production designer), Jonathan Filley (Cassidy), Lorraine Gary, who played Ellen Brody), Carl Gottlieb (Meadows, screenwriter), Jeffrey Kramer, who played Hendricks, Ian Shaw (son of Robert Shaw, who played Quint), Jeffrey Voorhees (Alex Kintner), and composer John Williams, who's theme and background music was integral the movie's success.
There are also plenty of famous superfans contributing, including J.J. Abrams, Emily Blunt, James Cameron, Cameron Crowe, George Lucas, Greg Nicotero, Jordan Peele, Steven Soderbergh, Guillermo del Toro, Robert Zemeckis, and more – reflect on how Jaws shaped their work and the cinematic landscape.
Alongside cast and crew, the film also features Peter Benchley’s widow Wendy Benchley, who has become a renowned voice for sharks and ocean policy advocate, plus their children, Tracy Benchley Turner and Clayton Benchley, and Peter's brother, Nat Benchley. All can give a rare glimpse into the real-life inspiration behind Peter Benchley's bestselling novel that started it all.
EXCLUSIVE: Wendy Benchley, whose late husband Peter wrote the novel Jaws, shares secrets behind of the filming of movie…
Cult classic Jaws was based on the novel of the same name by Peter Benchley, which became the beach read of the summer of 1974 and featured the iconic hand-painted cover of a great white shark. To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the film, Peter’s wife Wendy features in this new Nat Geo Wild and Disney Plus documentary about the making of Jaws, where she shares tales of her late husband’s inspiration for the book and how Jaws propelled them both into a lifetime of shark conservation.
Here, in an exclusive interview, Wendy, 84, shares some behind the scenes filming secrets and reflects on the legacy of Jaws…
What initially inspired your husband Peter to write a novel about a great white shark terrorising a coastal community?
"Peter had always had a fascination with sharks. As a teenager he’d go fishing with his dad on Nantucket Island and there would always be lots of sharks in the water. So for a long time he had this idea in his back pocket to write a story about a great white that hovers around a New England town and causes a little chaos. But when he finally got round to writing it he had no idea it would become a bestseller!"
Did director Steven Spielberg consult with Peter when it came to making the film?
"Oh yes, absolutely. Peter initially co-wrote the screenplay, although he was very happy when [American screenwriter] Carl Gottlieb came along and took over the day-to-day writing! But before filming started he and Steven had many back and forth conversations about the shark. In reality great whites are only around 15ft long and Peter fought hard to keep the mechanical shark used in the film as realistic as possible. But, as the magic movie-maker, Steven understood that the shark had to be 25ft to make it into enough of a monster to give the film its drama. But I want people to be assured that there aren’t actually any 25ft sharks in the ocean!"
Peter also landed a cameo role as a TV reporter, so did you get to spend time on set?
"Yes, we spent a few weeks at Martha’s Vineyard, where the movie was shot. We had a wonderful time there with [Richard] Dreyfuss, [Robert] Shaw and [Roy] Scheider, and having Peter do this little cameo part was great fun for all our family. You know, it was all new to us, but it was so fascinating. Dreyfuss was so funny, and as we know Shaw was a brilliant actor, but a little bit prickly, so you kind of had to be careful around him. And Roy Scheider was just a lovely human being who couldn’t believe he was in this movie starring alongside a great white shark!"
What did you make of the film when you first saw it?
"The first time we watched it we were with Richard [Dreyfuss] at a big theatre on Broadway in New York City. At the end, everybody stood up in the audience and cheered and screamed. Afterwards, we were on the sidewalk and I remember Richard just jumping up and down, saying, ‘we did it, we did it!’ He used some swear words too, which I won't repeat, but I think everybody was just elated because it was such a difficult film to make. That made the success even sweeter!"
How did the film change your life?
"It led us on a path of conservation and education work. At first Peter and I were horrified that some people took Jaws as a license to kill sharks. It was very disappointing. We really worked hard to change people’s perception and Peter got hundreds, maybe thousands of letters from people all over the world saying how the movie scared them but also made them want to know more about sharks. I’m so grateful for that. In so many ways Jaws has had a positive effect – it’s helped us understand sharks and want to save them."
Why do you think Jaws has remained such a cult classic 50 years on?
"The film is fantastic! The power of the movie is in the three main characters – Quint, Hooper and Sheriff Brody – and the nightmare situation they’re in. But I’d also go right back to the bones of the story and I think Peter created a really fascinating book. Not only did he have a real understanding of sharks, but because he was from Nantucket his characterisation of all the locals was very important. You know, nobody ever touched a word of that first chapter, which gives you the feel of what it would be like in the water with one of these magnificent great white sharks. But Steven was the one who brilliantly brought it all together. He gave the movie great depth!"
Behind the scenes and more on Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story
Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story is a 90-minute documentary that comes from Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Documentaries and Nedland Films, in partnership with Wendy Benchley and Laura Bowling. Darryl Frank and Justin Falvey are producers. For Nedland Films, Laurent Bouzereau and Markus Keith are producers, with Bouzereau also directing. And, for National Geographic, Tracy Rudolph Jackson and Ted Duvall executive produces.
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