50 Years Of Merch, Media And Money

Fifty years ago on Friday, director Steven Spielberg’s Jaws was released in theaters. The terrifying shark movie came to be defined as the first “summer blockbuster,” of course, but that was just the beginning. Apropos to the film’s tagline that teased, “Just when you thought it was safe to go back into the water,” Jaws opened revenue streams that are still gushing to this day.

Starring Roy Scheider, Robert Shaw and Richard Dreyfuss, Jaws was a monster hit, having earned $260.7 million in its initial domestic theatrical run in 1975. Adjusted for inflation via the Consumer Price Index, that amount equates to more than $1.5 billion in 2025.

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Production budget-wise, Jaws was made for $12 million, which USA Today reported was three times its original budget. According to the book George Lucas Blockbusting (via USA Today), Jaws’ studio, Universal Pictures, spent an “unprecedented” $700,000 on a TV advertising campaign before the film debuted on 400 screens nationwide (It’s worthy to note that most big blockbuster films open on 4,000-plus screens today).

Jaws is the seventh highest-grossing film, domestically, of all time, adjusted for inflation, per Box Office Mojo, behind Gone with the Wind, Star Wars: Episode IV – A New Hope, The Sound of Music, E.T. the Extraterrestrial, Titanic and The Ten Commandments. Behind Jaws at No. 8 on the list is Doctor Zhivago, followed by The Exorcist and Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to round out the Top 10.

Of course, the release of Jaws — featuring composer John Williams’ indellible theme music — was only the beginning of the franchise. Per The Numbers, Jaws 2 was released in 1978, earning $102.9 million domestically, followed by 1983’s Jaws 3-D ($42.2 million domestically) and 1987’s Jaws 4: The Revenge ($20.7 million domestically). In total, the Jaws franchise made $439.5 million in domestic ticket sales. Coupled with international receipts, the four films in the Jaws franchise made $829.8 million worldwide.

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In the franchise’s wake, of course, came an endless string of shark movies, but none that really matched the fury of the great white shark in Jaws that the production affectionately named “Bruce.” Of the notables worth mentioning, though, are such shark thrillers as Deep Blue Sea, The Shallows, The Meg (short for Megladon— a 75-foot-long shark!), 47 Meters Down and for the kids’ set, Shark Tale.

Of course, the low-budget 2013 TV movie Sharknado is worthy of mention, since it became a genre unto itself with a mixture of gruesome horror and tongue-firmly-planted-in-cheek humor. Sharknado was so popular that it spawned five sequels — 2015’s Sharknado 3: Oh Hell No! arguably has the best title of the follow-ups — ending with 2018’s The Last Sharknado: It’s About Time.

‘Jaws’ Lives On In Merchandising, Media, Video Games And Theme Park Attractions

While Jaws went on to become one of the highest-earning movies of all time, the cash flow hardly ended at the closing of the final curtain.

The introduction of Laserdiscs, as well as VHS and Betamax cassette tapes in the late 1970s and early 1980s, introduced the film to home audiences, which eventually gave way to DVDs and Blu-ray discs. While figures of how much money Jaws earned in early home media revenues are not avaialbe, The Numbers reports that Jaws made $12 million in DVD sales from 2012 to 2021, and $17 million in Blu-ray sales during the same time frame.

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The Jaws franchise has also carved out an existence in the video game space, beginning with the Commodore 64 8-bit video game simply named Jaws, which was released in 1987, according to Game Rant.

The video game site said five more official Jaws-inspired console/computer games have also been released. They are Jaws: The Computer Game (1989), Jaws (1989), Universals Studios Theme Park Adventure (2001), Jaws Unleashed (2006), Jaws: Ultimate Predator (2011) and Pinball FX 3 (2017), where users could play pinball-like games inspired by Universal Pictures’ Jaws, E.T. the Extraterrestrial and Back to the Future.

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Since it’s a Universal Studios property, Jaws, naturally, has also had its run as a theme park attraction, first as part of a tram tour at Universal Studios Hollywood in 1976, according to SyFy. Universal Studios Florida began its iteration of the attraction in 1990, SyFy noted, featuring, of course, a (mechanical) great white shark that snuck up on riders of the boat tour.

While the Universal Studios Florida Jaws attraction closed down in 2012, fans willing to travel can get their fix of the iconic shark at Universal Studios Japan’s Amity Village, appropriately named after the film’s fictional Amity Island (filmed in Martha’s Vineyard, Mass.) in the 1975 film.

The 50th Anniversary Of Jaws Has Inspired In Jaws’ Toys And Collectibles

While a movie where a great white shark attacks and kills people doesn’t seem tailor-made for the toy marketplace, toys and collectibles makers have still managed to creatively squeeze in some games for fans to play and more recently, action figures.

In 1975, the Ideal Toy Company released a crafty bit of merchandise called Jaws: The Game, which featured a plastic replica of the great white shark from Jaws along with 13 pieces of “junk” — a boot, anchor, ship’s wheel and a tire among them — with a pole.

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The object of the game is for the player to carefully fish the items out of the shark’s mouth without it snapping down its, well, jaws.

Of course, the original Jaws the Game can only be obtained on eBay and various auction sites now, but collectible maker NECA, just in time for the 50th anniversary of Jaws, reproduced Jaws the Game with updated stylings of the shark — which is 15 inches long— along with junk pieces.

In addition, NECA is producing 7-inch tall “Ultimate” action figures of Quint (Robert Shaw) and Hooper (Richard Dreyfus) with additional accessories. The company, however, has yet to obtain the license to make action figures of Roy Scheider’s Chief Martin Brody.

NECA isn’t the only company producing merchandise celebrating Jaws’ 50th anniversary. Collectibles maker The Bradford Exchange has the movie menace encased, appropriately, in a water globe that sits atop a stylized version of Quint’s boat, the Orca, while collectibles maker Mondo features the sea monster breaking through a shark cage.

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The NBC Store— owned by NBC Universal— has a smattering of merchandise, from Amity Island beach towels, mugs and shot glasses to Jaws sweatshirts, T-shirts and even baby onesies. Presumably, the onesies were made for future Jaws fans as mementos when they celebrate the 100th anniversary of Jaws in 2075.

For those fans invested in the now, Jaws celebrates its 50th anniversary on Friday.

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