Jaws was a summer blockbuster that terrified a generation – and remains an iconic film to this day. In honour of its 50th anniversary we take a look at where Jaws was filmed
Where was Jaws filmed?
The majority of Jaws was filmed around the Massachusetts area of the United States.
Martha's Vineyard
Amity Island, the beach town terrorised by the gargantuan shark, is actually the island Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts. Its wide, shallow beaches made it the ideal place to get those iconic shots of beach-goers scrambling out of the sea – as well as to rest the mechanical rigging for Bruce (the manmade mechanical Jaws).
Edgartown South Beach and Cow Beach
The opening bonfire scene before Chrissie's watery death was filmed at Edgartown South Beach, with the following scenes being shot at the shallower nearby Cow Beach. If you're feeling brave enough to take a dip, Edgartown South Beach is a free public beach.
Edgartown
Once a major historic whaling port, Edgartown's white clapboard buildings still retain their yester-year quality that they did in Jaws. External scenes for the Amity police station, the Amity Gazette and the Amity hardware store were filmed here. External and interior scenes of the Amity Town Hall were filmed in the real-life Edgartown Town Hall.
A backyard swimming pool in California
One particularly horrifying scene in the film involves the oceanographer Matt Hooper diving down to explore a sunken boat – when a severed head pops out of it. Steven Spielberg filmed the scene in the backyard swimming pool of the movie's editor, Verna Fields. To make the swimming pool water murkier, the director had a gallon of milk poured in. We hope he offered to pay for the clean-up afterwards.