Jul 18

'You're Gonna Need A Bigger Boat' - LEGO Set Featuring the 'Orca' from Jaws is Coming

The Jaws LEGO set features a replica of the 'Orca' and incredible attention to detail that boaters will appreciate.

Every boater needs this on their Christmas list.

It turns out people take their LEGO really seriously.

As one of the most iconic and enduring toy companies in existence, it seems clear why they've stood the test of time. They sell ageless fun that reimagines pop culture's favorite things from movies, to vehicles, to machinery, to landscapes, and everything in between. They have a massive following of 18 million YouTube subscribers, plus another 10 million on Instagram. Like I said, the people yearn for the LEGO.

We first noticed the LEGO phenomenon when several readers pointed out that LEGO was building a Titanic. It was a respectful, and popular, reimagining of one of boating's most well-known stories. Now they've created something once again for nautical enthusiasts and pop culture fanatics alike.

Or perhaps, finatics, we should say.

LEGO has announced the launch of a Jaws themed playset that includes the Orca, the shark, and the main cast from the iconic 1975 film.

We've already done a deep dive behind the true story of the Orca, which is something every boater should read, and now it seems fitting to add a matching LEGO set to our office in homage to one of boating's most influential films.

The 1497 piece set features the fishing boat -- the Orca -- as well as the shark (aka "Bruce," according to Spielberg), plus the main cast (Chief Brody, Captain Quint, and Matt Hooper), and other finer details like fishing equipment, the shark cage, and even Chief Brody's revolver.

The details are where the set shines as Hooper is sporting his tattered beard and nerdy glasses, while Quint looks exactly as you'd expect -- unhinged, even in plastic form. Chief Brody looks.... anxious, which is exactly how he's portrayed in the film.

The centerpiece is obviously the Orca, although the shark takes a close second. "Bruce" the shark features an articulated body, which allows fun-goers to twist and bend him while recreating his handiwork (like jumping onboard and eating Quint, for example).

The Orca features a detailed cabin with a removable roof, an adjustable boom and rigging, plus lots of recognizable accessories like Brody's revolver, compass, fishing rod, harpoon, spear, and the yellow barrels that were pivotal to the movie plot.

Fun Fact- there were actually two Orca boats made for the original film. Orca I, the actual functioning vessel was a lobster boat under the name Warlock before being renamed and refitted with a mast pulpit for the movie. It was repainted in burgundy and black and had oversized windows installed to make it more identifiable as an intimidating shark hunting vessel. Mission accomplished.

Orca II was a fibreglass replica of the original Orca I and made strictly for the film. It was a sinkable set piece that was put in place anytime "Bruce" attacked the ship. With a complicated system of hydraulic barrels, it reportedly sunk properly on more than one occasion -- taking two expensive cameras on loan from Universal Studios with it. Its fragile wood components required the importing of wood from California to get the right destructive sequence.

Now you can have a plastic Orca that neither sinks nor gets destroyed by Bruce -- unless you're playing in the bathtub.

As for how they approached the design for the set, fan designer Johnny Campbell reveals: "JAWS is my favourite movie of all-time, so I really wanted to recreate it in LEGO bricks. LEGO building has always been a part of my life in some shape or form but in order to get all of the finer details, I actually freeze-framed JAWS as I watched it so that I could catch a glimpse of the finer details taking notes as I went along. It is just mind-blowing that my design is now an official LEGO set. I can't wait to stand in a LEGO shop looking at the shelves and seeing a set that I have been involved with and watching someone buying it. It’s every LEGO fan’s dream!”