 For the adaptation, Spielberg wanted to preserve the novel's basic concept while removing Benchley's many subplots and altering the characterizations, having found all of the characters of the book unlikable.Among the major changes were the removal of the adulterous affair between Ellen Brody and Matt Hooper and Mayor Larry Vaughn's connections to the mafia.Quint became a survivor of the World War II disaster, and changing the cause of the shark's death from extensive wounds to a scuba tank explosion.