#Final draft collaboration crack

Mirroring the camaraderie of the three protagonists on the Orca, everyone was working together to finish the film despite mounting deadline pressure, the unpredictability of an ocean shoot, and a mechanical shark that notoriously kept breaking down. Gottlieb would also co-write the sequels, Jaws 2 and Jaws 3-D. His contributions were so significant, he’d be cited as the script’s primary writer and the only one to share official writing credit with Benchley. He was on set every day and would literally rewrite a scene the night before they shot it. Most impressively, Gottlieb did most of the rewrite during a nine-week period of principal photography. Gottlieb was cast as Harry Meadows-Amity Island’s politically connected newspaper editor (the mustached fellow who says, “We never had that kind of trouble in these waters”), and what initially started off as a “one-week dialogue polish” ended up being a massive rewrite. Being friends with Gottlieb and aware of his talent, Spielberg offered him a small role in Jaws and a chance to punch up the script. Afterward, Gottlieb had honed his skill writing for sitcoms like The Bob Newhart Show, All in the Family, and The Odd Couple. The pressure was on to deliver a shooting draft and quickly, but Spielberg still didn’t feel the script was there yet.Ī comedic writer and improvisational performer, Gottlieb had won an Emmy® in 1969 for his writing on The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour (along with fellow writer, and future collaborator on The Jerk, Steve Martin). The S ugarland Express writers Matthew Robbins and Hal Barwood are said to have also done an uncredited pass. Sackler did an uncredited pass of the screenplay, introducing more dramatic weight to the main characters: Martin Brody’s fear of the water was introduced as well as Quint’s backstory involving his survival of the USS Indianapolis disaster.

After doing his own rewrite of the script, Spielberg enlisted Tony and Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Howard Sackler (best known for The Great White Hope). Overall, Spielberg imagined a more crowd-pleasing story than Benchley’s darker and more cynical vision. Spielberg thought it was too much of a distraction and would take away from the camaraderie between the three men aboard the Orca.

One particular subplot that Spielberg wanted jettisoned was an adulterous affair between Ellen Brody and Matt Hooper (who is Brody’s antagonist in the novel rather than an ally). Spielberg loved the third act in which the three protagonists go off to sea and hunt the shark, but he felt the characters were unlikable and that there were too many subplots. When 26-year-old director Steven Spielberg came on board, he wanted a major rewrite of the first two acts. Not surprisingly, Benchley’s draft didn’t depart much from his novel.

#Final draft collaboration crack

Per the deal in which they acquired the rights, Benchley was promised first crack at the screenplay. The main reason for the rush was Universal hoped to have the production wrapped before potential WGA and SAG strikes (both guild’s contracts were due to expire). The film was given a 3.5 million-dollar budget and had a tight shooting schedule of 55 days with principal photography set to begin in May of 1974 (just a few months away). They subsequently purchased the rights and made it a top priority on their production slate. They agreed it was the most exciting thing they had ever read and would make one hell of a movie. Zanuck and Brown, intrigued by the description of the plot, got their hands on the book and both read it in a single night. Zanuck and David Brown, producers at Universal, came across it thanks to a tip from Brown’s wife, an editor at Cosmopolitan magazine. Peter Benchley’s novel Jaws wasn’t published yet when Richard D. And the circumstances surrounding the writing prove that sometimes a deadline is good for inspiration. With contributions from various writers, a director and even the actors, the screenplay for Jaws is one of the best examples of cinema being a collaborative art form.