The movie Jaws changed everything when it came out on June 20, 1975. Steven Spielberg made a film about a huge shark that ate people at a beach town. The movie scared everyone and made them afraid to go swimming. It became the first film to make over 100 million dollars at movie theaters. People waited outside cinemas for hours just to watch it.
The shark appears on screen for only four minutes during the whole movie. Most of the time viewers cannot see the monster at all. This made people use their minds to picture scary things happening underwater. The film created what we call summer blockbuster movies today. Action films and scary movies started coming out every summer after Jaws became popular.
Chris Lowe studies sharks at a university and watched the movie being made when he was 11 years old. He says the film actually helped shark research because people became curious about these animals. Many shark scientists decided to study these creatures because of the movie. Lowe explains that real shark attacks almost never happen to people who swim at beaches.
The movie made 260 million dollars around the world when it first played at theaters. It won three Academy Awards and got nominated for best picture. The film started a whole series of shark movies that came after it. Some were serious and some were completely silly like the Sharknado movies about flying sharks.
Shark populations were already getting smaller before the movie came out because people caught too many of them. The film actually helped save sharks because it made people care about protecting them. More sharks live near Canada's coast today than 50 years ago. People see them more often and learn they are not as dangerous as the movie made them seem.
The shark appears on screen for only four minutes during the whole movie. Most of the time viewers cannot see the monster at all. This made people use their minds to picture scary things happening underwater. The film created what we call summer blockbuster movies today. Action films and scary movies started coming out every summer after Jaws became popular.
Chris Lowe studies sharks at a university and watched the movie being made when he was 11 years old. He says the film actually helped shark research because people became curious about these animals. Many shark scientists decided to study these creatures because of the movie. Lowe explains that real shark attacks almost never happen to people who swim at beaches.
The movie made 260 million dollars around the world when it first played at theaters. It won three Academy Awards and got nominated for best picture. The film started a whole series of shark movies that came after it. Some were serious and some were completely silly like the Sharknado movies about flying sharks.
Shark populations were already getting smaller before the movie came out because people caught too many of them. The film actually helped save sharks because it made people care about protecting them. More sharks live near Canada's coast today than 50 years ago. People see them more often and learn they are not as dangerous as the movie made them seem.
