Susan Backlinie, an actress and stuntwoman who played the first person eaten by the shark in Jaws, has died.<\/p>\n
Backlinie passed away at home in Ventura, California, on Saturday. She was 77 years old.<\/p>\n
Matthew Templeton, her convention agent, told The Daily Jaws that the news was true.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is with heartfelt regret to confirm our beloved Susan passed away this morning,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe want to thank everyone who sent their condolences at this time.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlease respect the family\u2019s privacy during this difficult time.\u201d<\/p>\n
She was best known for her role as Chrissie Watkins in Steven Speilberg\u2019s 1975 movie Jaws.<\/p>\n
It was when she was 28 years old that the nationally ranked swimmer and professional diver played the victim of skinny-dipping.<\/p>\n
For a while, Backlinie worked with animals and water before the movie found her.<\/p>\n
The stunt woman worked as a mermaid at Florida\u2019s Weeki Wachee Springs tourist attraction and had done work with many wild animals, such as a tiger and a bear.<\/p>\n
Backlinie was going after her first movie because she knew Spielberg would be interested in something no other actress could offer.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you hire me, you might get close-ups of the stunt itself.\u201d He told the director, \u201cIf you hire an actress, she\u2019ll have to cover her face.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI went to stunts to find the perfect stuntwoman, and Susan was up to the task,\u201d Spielberg wrote in Laurent Bouzerau\u2019s book Spielberg: The First Ten Years.<\/p>\n
Backlinie talked about what Spielberg told her before they filmed the famous scene in an interview in 2017.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe first thing he said to me was, \u2018When your scene is done, I want everyone under the seats with the popcorn and the bubblegum,\u2019\u201d she told The Post.<\/p>\n
A lot of people have paid tribute to the actress and stuntwoman on social media, with a lot of focus on her role in Jaws.<\/p>\n
\u201cSusan was a loving and kind person, and the Jaws community will miss her very much,\u201d said Jeffrey Kramer, who also played Susan on the show.<\/p>\n
\u201cShe has a special place in our hearts.\u201d<\/p>\n
One fan wrote on X (formerly Twitter), \u201cRest in peace to Susan Backlinie. Her Chrissie Watkins in \u2018Jaws\u2019 had the most memorable tug on the leg in movie history.\u201d<\/p>\n
Another fan said, \u201cShe has to go down in movie history,\u201d and a third said, \u201cShe did an unbelievable job that made the whole world afraid of the ocean.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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