4. The Lifespan of Sharks Isn’t As Long As You Think
There’s a scene where Brody is reading about sharks and says that they can live thousands of years. The longest lifespan of a shark recorded is a little bit short of 400 years old – which is drastically off from 2,000 or 3,000 years. Great Whites can last anywhere from 40 to 70 years old, and the average lifespan of all sharks is even lower, hovering around 20-30 years. So, while it would be cool to see a shark live thousands of years, it’s simply not possible and has never happened.
5. Great White Sharks Have Never Been Recorded at 25-Feet
Quint, the shark hunter, estimated that the shark in ‘Jaws’ weighed 3 tons and was around 25 ft. in length. On average, Great White Sharks are only known to grow to 15 to 20 feet in length, with the weight averaging around 2,000 pounds all the way up to 5,000 pounds (only 2.5 tons).
While this species can grow to be large and heavy, it was exaggerated a bit for the movie, perhaps to emphasize the gruesome effect of the attacks throughout the film. That goes to say, the animatronic shark that appeared in the film, “Bruce”, can now be found at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures if you want to get the full effect of how large the movie shark actually was.
‘Jaws’ will always be remembered in the history books for being the movie that single-handedly made many afraid of sharks and the ocean. In fact, people are still so afraid of sharks that they continue to hunt, fin, and fish for these creatures, which is one reason why Peter Benchley stated that he regretted even writing the novel in the first place. This is why it’s important to educate ourselves about the reality of sharks and remember that our favorite movies aren’t always so accurate.
