In Jaws, the death of young Alex Kintner is one of the film’s most shocking and pivotal moments. I’ve always found this scene to be the scariest and most disturbing, and a deleted scene that shows the death in full would have only intensified that sense of terror.
Originally, the plan was to show the shark breaking the surface and devouring Alex. In the original version, a doll of Alex was floating among the bathers, and the shark was supposed to leap out of the water, grabbing the doll and raft in its mouth.
Finally, the shark succeeded in grabbing the raft and rolled over on its side, mimicking the behavior of a real shark. This take was the one Spielberg decided to use.
Truth about Alex Kintner scene
However, the producers worried that the image of the shark with Alex in its mouth was too disturbing and could potentially jeopardize the film’s PG rating. As a result, Spielberg and editor Verna Fields made the decision to trim the beginning of the shot so that only the shark’s fins were briefly visible as it flipped over.
Several theories circulate about why the full scene was ultimately cut. One theory points to the persistent malfunctions with the mechanical shark, which forced Spielberg to keep the shark hidden for much of the film, enhancing the suspense. Another reason suggested is that the scene was simply too graphic and shocking for audiences, while Spielberg also didn’t want to reveal the shark too early in the movie.
While no full footage of the deleted scene exists, brief snippets can be seen in a documentary on the Jaws Blu-ray, leaving fans to imagine what might have been.
Orca – the mystery boat
The Orca, Quint’s legendary shark-hunting boat, has a bit of a mystic vibe, especially when it comes to its yellow barrels and the word “ORCA” on the back.
For anyone with a sharp eye, there’s a fun little goof in Jaws involving the barrels. When the crew heads out, there are five yellow barrels on the Orca. But after they manage to get the third barrel into the shark, Quint walks past them with his harpoon gun… and surprise — there are still three barrels left!
And if that’s not enough, the word “ORCA” on the back of the boat keeps changing from shot to shot, going from rusty to shiny. And did you notice that the machete that Quint jams into the starboard side of the Orca keeps disappearing and reappearing throughout the rest of the movie?
