Jaws Quotes

Context

People mistakenly think this line is spoken by Martin Brody, played by Roy Scheider, in the film Jaws, directed by Steven Spielberg (1975).

Brody, a man confident in the size of his own ship, didn't actually take ownership for the too-small boat chosen to hunt down a shark bigger than anything ever seen before. When he catches a glimpse of the giant monster of the deep, he says to the boat captain, "You're going to need a bigger boat," not "We're going to need a bigger boat." It's not his responsibility. He has bigger fish to fry, after all.

Where you've heard it

You've heard this if someone thinks they need a bigger boat. Or, more generally, if someone has underestimated a really big problem. No one ever says, "We're going to need a smaller boat."

Incidentally, the common misquote isn't that far off.

Pretentious Factor

If you were to drop this quote at a dinner party, would you get an in-unison "awww" or would everyone roll their eyes and never invite you back? Here it is, on a scale of 1-10.

Since you're putting yourself in the boat, the misquote makes it a hair less pretentious than the actual quote. Way to take responsibility! Now about that shark…