This is the Hot Wheels 50th Anniversary Jaws Set, it’s a retro-styled diorama-in-a-box that includes the famous boat from Jaws (the Orca), as well as the shark approaching from the rear, and a character on the rear deck – possibly meant to be Martin Brody.
This year is the 50th anniversary of Jaws, a 1975 American thriller directed by Steven Spielberg that became one of the top films of the 1970s and one of the most influential movies of its kind. Jaws became the highest-grossing film in history – until Star Wars was released into theaters two years later to take the crown.
Above Video: This is the original theatrical trailer for Jaws, a film now regarded as a major classic of 20th century cinema.
History Speedrun: Jaws
Jaws was directed by Steven Spielberg and based on Peter Benchley’s 1974 novel, is a suspenseful thriller that centered on a great white shark that terrorizes the fictional beach town of Amity Island. When a young swimmer is killed, police chief Martin Brody (Roy Scheider) tries to close the beaches, but he faces persistent resistance from the town’s mayor and business owners – who all feared a loss of summer tourism revenue.
As the body count from attacks rises, Brody teams up with oceanographer Matt Hooper (Richard Dreyfuss) and professional shark hunter Quint (Robert Shaw) to track and kill the shark.
The film’s production was plagued by major setbacks, most significantly with the malfunctioning mechanical shark nicknamed “Bruce,” which forced Spielberg to rely more on suspense – suspense that was often built to a fever pitch by the now world-famous Jaws theme music.
These limitations with Bruce inadvertently became a strength, helping shape the film’s entire ethos. Today, John Williams’ minimalist, deeply ominous score remains one of cinema’s most recognizable musical compositions.
Jaws was produced on a budget of $9 million, it went significantly over its original $4 million estimate due to production delays. Despite the troubled shoot, the film became a massive box office success, earning over $470 million USD worldwide.
Jaws was produced on a budget of approximately $9 million, though it went significantly over its original $4 million estimate due to production delays. Despite the troubled shoot, the film became a massive box office success, earning over $470 million USD worldwide. Image courtesy of Universal Pictures.
It was the first movie to gross over $100 million domestically during its initial theatrical run, making it the highest-grossing film of all time until Star Wars surpassed it a couple of years later in 1977.
The film’s release strategy was also groundbreaking for the time – Universal rolled it out with a wide release (over 450 screens) and a massive national television marketing campaign. This approach helped to established what we know today as the summer blockbuster model, a term often credited to Jaws itself.
Before Jaws, major studios typically avoided summer for high-profile releases – its success completely redefined the seasonal timing of film debuts and studio marketing strategies.
Jaws was nominated for four Academy Awards and won three – Best Film Editing, Best Original Score, and Best Sound. Its cultural impact has been profound, instilling a lasting fear of sharks society-wide at the time, boosting interest in marine biology, and inspiring a slew of cheap imitations and less-than-stellar sequels.
Spielberg, who was only 27 at the time of filming, emerged as a major Hollywood director.
The Hot Wheels 50th Anniversary Jaws Set
The Hot Wheels 50th Anniversary Jaws Set is an unusual release from Mattel, it was developed by Mattel Creations as a limited edition run to celebrate the film’s 50th anniversary. Only two are available per customer, an effort to avoid people buying them in large quantities and reselling them to make a quick buck.
The Hot Wheels 50th Anniversary Jaws Set is an unusual release from Mattel, it was developed by Mattel Creations as a limited edition run to celebrate the film’s 50th anniversary.
The set includes a complex diorama inside the box, including the ocean, the Orca (the name of boat), the shark (Bruce), and a human character. It’s designed to be kept inside the box and put on display, but of course, once you own it you can do what you want.
It’s due to become available for sale in just a few hours (at the time of writing), and as noted above there is a limit of two per customer. It seems likely that this release is going to sell out quick, so if you do want one you might want to move fast.
Images courtesy of Mattel + Universal Pictures
Articles that Ben Branch has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
