Jaws (franchise)

Jaws is an American media franchise that started with the 1975 film of the same name, based on Peter Benchley's 1974 novel, which was itself inspired by the Jersey Shore shark attacks of 1916. The franchise expanded into three theatrical sequels, a theme park ride and other tie-in merchandise, with its central subject across every installment a great white shark attacking people in specific coastal areas of the United States and the Bahamas, opposed in each film by the Brody family. Steven Spielberg directed the original film from a screenplay Benchley adapted with Carl Gottlieb and Howard Sackler, though neither Benchley nor Spielberg returned to direct or write any of the sequels.