2% on Rotten Tomatoes: Jaws 4 Was Worse Than You Remember
Directed by Joseph Sargent and clearly rushed into theaters to cash in on name recognition, Jaws: The Revenge did more than just flop — it retroactively made people appreciate how hard Spielberg carried the first film.
Jaws: The Revenge was released on July 17, 1987, and it's still circling the bottom of the cinematic food chain. This was the fourth and final entry in a franchise that started with Steven Spielberg's razor-sharp thriller — and ended with a psychic shark flying through the air like it's got beef with a specific family.
Yes, a shark with a personal vendetta. That's the actual plot.
Instead of continuing the grounded tension of the original, Jaws: The Revenge throws logic overboard. It pretends Jaws 3-D never happened and sets up a new shark that may or may not be the reincarnation of the original — one that tracks the Brody family across state lines and dreams. Not kidding.
Meanwhile, Michael Caine shows up playing a charter pilot named Hoagie, clearly wondering how his career got here. He filmed his role in 10 days, was paid $1 million, and famously missed accepting his Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Hannah and Her Sisters because he was busy shooting Jaws: The Revenge. He later said:
"I have never seen the film, but by all accounts it is terrible. However, I have seen the house that it built, and it is terrific."
That's the energy of this entire production.
As for the technical side — the original Jaws made its broken shark into a suspense-building asset. Jaws: The Revenge just gives us a broken shark. One that can roar underwater. And leap vertically out of the ocean. And impale itself on a boat.
It also features:
- Flashbacks to events Ellen Brody wasn't present for
- A character who gets eaten alive and then shows up later, fine
- A plane crash where Caine emerges from the ocean bone-dry
- A PG-13 rating and somehow still boring
The movie earned $51.9 million worldwide — not a total disaster on paper, but it effectively killed the franchise. It was roasted by critics, earned a 2% Rotten Tomatoes score, and snagged Golden Raspberry nominations for Worst Actress, Worst Supporting Actor, and Worst Director. Eddie Murphy should've directed it — at least then it would've had an excuse.
It's now streaming on Peacock, in case you need to remind yourself how low Hollywood will go when there's IP to squeeze and no one left to say no.