Jaws 2

Three years after the bloodbath that hit Amity, a second great white returns to stalk the waters around the seaside town. Chief Martin Brody, still haunted by the first summer, tries to keep order as the beaches reopen and tourists pour in. A series of brutal early encounters renews the fear, prompting the mayor to push for a quick, safe solution and the local authorities to clash over risks and responsibility. Brody teams with a seasoned fisherman and a skeptical oceanographer to track the predator, facing not only the creature but also public panic, media attention, and the pressure to protect a town in turmoil. Amity itself becomes a pressure cooker as officials and residents argue over safety and money.

Directed by Jeannot Szwarc in 1978, the film revisits Peter Benchley's Amity world with Roy Scheider returning as Brody and a new supporting cast. John Williams again supplies the score as the sequel heightens the threat of the shark again.

Box office performance was strong, with worldwide receipts around $187,884,000 on a $20,000,000 budget, reinforcing Jaws 2 as a major summer hit that followed the original's huge momentum and solidified the franchise as a marquee spine of late summer releases.

Jaws 2 left a mark on popular cinema by sustaining the village of Amity as a battleground between horror and everyday life. Its chase scenes and the ominous ocean serve as a reminder that danger can surface when beaches reopen, influencing later seaside thrillers that linger in memory globally today.

Critics viewed the film as popcorn horror that kept suspense high and raised the stakes from the first film. Themes about leadership, public fear, and the fragile balance between tourism and safety recur, making the sequel feel more about civic tension than pure monster danger, with Scheider delivering Brody today.