Killer whales in popular culture and at the film's end, seemingly for forgiveness. In contrast, the 1974 Walt Disney produced motion picture "The Island at the Top of the World" portrayed killer whales as bloodthirsty hunters of the protagonists in one particularly brutal scene. In "Jaws" (1975), the name of the boat used to hunt the great white shark is the "Orca", given the killer whale's status as a known predator of the shark. However, in the sequel "Jaws 2", the shark's first victim is a killer whale, which was probably intended more as a Hollywood joke than an accurate portrayal of the eating habits
Jaws (film) directed his first theatrical film, "The Sugarland Express", for Zanuck and Brown. At the end of a meeting in their office, Spielberg noticed their copy of the still-unpublished Benchley novel, and after reading it was immediately captivated. He later observed that it was similar to his 1971 television film "Duel" in that both deal with "these leviathans targeting everymen". After Richards's departure, the producers signed Spielberg to direct in June 1973, before the release of "The Sugarland Express". Before production began, however, Spielberg grew reluctant to continue with "Jaws", in fear of becoming typecast as the "truck and shark director".