The Best Characters In Jaws

Steven Spielberg’s Jaws celebrates its fiftieth anniversary in 2025, and even after all these decades, it still manages to scare people from going into the water due to its killer shark. While the brutal kills and the horrors of the deep are what draw people, it’s the unforgettable characters and their impact on the story that make Jaws so iconic and remembered fondly.

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Jaws not only spawned three sequels but also inspired a multitude of shark-related movies that continue to be produced today. However, few manage to capture the same magic as the characters in Jaws. From the courageous new chief of Amity Island to the mysterious fisherman, these characters have captured the hearts of generations and continue to keep audiences on the edge of their seats.

7

Mayor Larry Vaughn

Possibly The Most Hate-Worthy Movie Mayor

• Played By: Murray Hamilton

While the shark slays innocent victims, it is debatable that Mayor Larry Vaughn is the true villain of Jaws due to his negligence and blinding need for the town of Amity to make money. He is the first one to deny the idea that a shark attacked the first victim, refuses to close the beaches when more attacks happen, and refuses to listen to Martin Brody until the shark attacks children.

While Mayor Vaughn was thinking about the sake of the small town and economy, which is almost entirely based around the beaches, he went too far. When legions of people were gathered on Amity Island, thus making the town money, he coaxed people into getting into the water, even though the shark was still in the water. He epitomizes how greed and ambition can be worse than a vicious killing.

6

Deputy Leonard Hendricks

The Deputy Who Deserves More Recognition

• Played By: Jeffrey Kramer

The unsung hero of Amity is Deputy Leonard Hendricks, who sticks by Martin Brody from the beginning to the end. He’s the one who finds the body of the first victim, and he never gives in to the Amity City Council’s need to cover up the shark attacks. Considering how loyal he is, it’s actually surprising that Hendricks isn’t on the Orca with Brody, Hooper, and Quint in the fight against the shark.

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Hendricks is also one of the few nice people on Amity Island that Martin Brody deals with in Jaws, whereas most of the residents living on the island are rude, impatient, or unhelpful in the situation. His partnership with Brody also results in multiple memorable comedic moments without ruining the tension and horror that comes from the shark.

5

Ellen Brody

She Brings Heart To Martin’s Side Of The Story

Ellen Brody is Martin’s rock, supporting him from start to finish as his wife. While she is mainly in a supporting role, she is there throughout each portion of the film as Martin deals with the anguish during and after the shark attacks. She also helps humanize Martin Brody as a character, showing that they are just a regular family trying to settle on Amity Island.

Just the scene where Ellen watches Martin and their son Sean bonding at the dinner table or crying when Martin ships off on the Orca brings so much heart and joy to a movie full of grisly murders, preventing Jaws from feeling like a typical slasher movie. Ellen also helps as much as she can by keeping an eye on Sean during the Fourth of July event and tending to Michael after he’s been attacked.

4

Matt Hooper

It Takes Bravery To Fight A Shark Head On

• Played By: Richard Dreyfuss

Far more likable than his counterpart in the Jaws novel, Matt Hooper comes into the story as a shark expert sent to examine and determine what Amity Island is dealing with. Rather than a typical rich guy, Hooper is one of the most helpful in discovering the truth about the killings, even figuring out that the first shark is not the correct shark.

Richard Dreyfuss delivers a standout performance as Matt Hooper, bringing comedic relief to the film. His chemistry with Roy Scheider, who plays Martin Brody, feels authentic, and the tension between Hooper and Quint generates many memorable exchanges. Additionally, Hooper demonstrates bravery by being the first to risk his life by entering the water in an attempt to kill the shark.

3

Quint

Robert Shaw Deserved An Oscar For His Performance

The late Robert Shaw only had twenty-one minutes of screen time in the entirety of Jaws as Quint, but in that time, he gave one of the most memorable performances in the last five decades. From the moment he appears, it’s clear that he’s more than just some local fisherman with a desire to collect on the bounty when the shark kills a boy.

Quint cements himself in cinema history when he, Hooper, and Chief Brody spend the last third of the movie in the ocean hunting the shark themselves. From his iconic monologue about surviving the U.S.S. Indianapolis and shark attacks in World War 2 to his horrific demise with the shark, Quint is intentionally reminiscent of Captain Ahab from Moby Dick, where he can be just as much a villain and a hero.

2

Bruce

The Shark Is A Mysterious Yet Iconic Villain

• The animatronic shark frequently broke down, causing it to be largely unseen in the movie.

While he lacks character development and dialogue, Bruce is the main villain of Jaws, and everything revolves around him. Even when he’s not on-screen attacking innocent victims, the shark’s presence is still felt because the human characters talk about him, investigate his feeding areas, and live in fear of what he’ll do next.

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Named by Steven Spielberg and adopted by fans, Bruce is much larger than a typical shark and acts more like a villain, which still inspires fiction today, including oceanic horror video games. Even experienced hunters like Quint and Hooper acknowledge they’ve never encountered a creature like Bruce, suggesting he might be an evolutionary anomaly or even supernatural.

1

Chief Martin Brody

The Everyman Hero Who Saved Amity From A Shark

What makes Chief Martin Brody so likable as the main hero is that he’s not a super cop, equipped with incredible skill and cunning. Instead, Martin is an everyday man who has thalassophobia and is simply trying to do the right thing by protecting the people of Amity Island from the deadly shark lurking in the waters.

Despite the Mayor and the rest of the city council pushing against him, he’s always actively working to stop the shark. After the shark attacks a group of children, including his son, Martin evolves into joining Quint and Hooper on the Orca. The relatable nature of a mild-mannered police chief gets the audience to root for him, especially when he has to go face-to-face with the monster as the Orca is torn apart, which makes it more than satisfying when he’s the one to kill it.

Jaws

Release Date

June 20, 1975

Runtime

124 minutes