ROBERT SHAW MADE ME DOUBT MYSELF SAYS JAWS ACTOR RICHARD DREYFUSS
Jaws was one tough movie to make. Like almost impossible. If shooting on the ocean wasn’t hard enough, director Steven Spielberg had to contend with animatronic sharks not working, the threat of industry strikes and inconvenienced locals. However there was one problem he could do little about.
When leading men Robert Shaw (Quint) and Richard Dreyfuss (Matt Hooper) clashed on set, it was a source of much tension and amusement. Shaw would tease Dreyfuss about lack of stage acting experience; while on one occasion Dreyfuss threw one of Shaw’s alcoholic drinks overboard.
“He made me doubt I could do things I knew I could do.”
This clashing of personalities would prove to be somewhat of a blessing in disguise. The off-set tension between the two stars was brought out beautifully on screen and made the sour relationship between Quint and Hooper all the more real.
But Shaw’s mind games saw him goad the young actor about his weight, telling him he couldn’t do 20 good push-ups with co-star Roy Scheider as referee to the challnge. It got so bad that Shaw even dared Dreyfuss to jump from top of the mast of the Orca!
“He thought Dreyfuss needed a slapping down.”
Some people have speculated that Robert Shaw instigated this ‘feud’ as a way to get to bring more realism to the finished movie. If that’s true, it goes to show what a genius Robert Shaw really was. However, the experience of working with Shaw stayed with Dreyfuss long after shooting Jaws had wrapped.
Dreyfuss’ appreciation of the time he got to spend with Robert Shaw far outweighs the juvenile games and goading. In an interview with Universal Pictures All-Access, actor Richard Dreyfuss described Shaw as a “promethean character” who was intimidating and was scared by him while also “exhilarated by him… and worshiped him… as a grand artist”. You can watch the full interview below.
Until next time, farewell and adieu.
Words by Ross Williams
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