Steven Spielberg’s $495M Thriller Hit Officially Releases On Netflix After Making 55x Its Budget

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Steven Spielberg’s seminal hit is sinking its teeth into Netflix.

Steven Spielberg is a giant of the New Hollywood era and a key figure in creating the modern blockbuster. He’s one of the most brilliant and impactful directors in film history, and still holds the record for highest box office earnings of all time. He first gained widespread attention with the thrilling success of Jaws, and followed it up with a series of amazing and popular films like Close Encounters of the Third Kind, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, and the famous Indiana Jones series – one of which is now available on Netflix.

The classic thriller Jaws, which revolutionized filmmaking over 50 years ago, is now available to stream. Directed by Steven Spielberg and based on Peter Benchley’s 1974 novel, the 1975 film tells the story of a town terrorized by a great white shark. A police chief, a marine biologist, and a professional shark hunter join forces to hunt down the dangerous predator and protect swimmers.

The classic thriller Jaws is now available to stream on Netflix! It’s just one of a large batch of movies added to the service in April 2026, including The Age of Adaline, Along Came Polly, American Gangster, Atonement, Bohemian Rhapsody, Casino, Kindergarten Cop, Lucy, five Mission: Impossible films, Smokey and the Bandit, and a variety of other titles.

The movie Jaws features Roy Scheider as Police Chief Martin Brody, Robert Shaw as the shark hunter Quint, and Richard Dreyfuss as marine biologist Matt Hooper. Lorraine Gary plays Brody’s wife, Ellen, and Murray Hamilton is the town’s mayor, Larry Vaughn. Other cast members include Carl Gottlieb, Jeffrey Kramer, Susan Backlinie, Lee Fierro, and Peter Benchley.

The film Jaws was a critical success, earning high praise and impressive scores on Rotten Tomatoes (97% and 91%). Reviewers highlighted its captivating story, skillful filmmaking, and ability to build suspense. Over time, Jaws has become a benchmark for creating thrilling, large-scale movies.

With numerous re-releases, most recently in August 2025 to celebrate its 50th anniversary, Jaws has earned a total of $495 million worldwide. When it first came out in 1975, it was the highest-grossing film ever, but Star Wars took that title two years later.

The film Jaws is considered a turning point in movie history, essentially creating the modern summer blockbuster. Along with Star Wars, it helped define how Hollywood makes money today: focusing on big, exciting action and adventure movies with simple, easily understood plots, released during the summer months with massive marketing campaigns.

Universal Pictures released Jaws in over 450 theaters, which was a very large release for a major movie back then. They also heavily promoted it with lots of TV commercials and related products. Now, over fifty years later, Jaws isn’t being shown in cinemas—instead, it’s available on streaming services.

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2026-04-23 22:08