Titanic producer Jon Landau has said he doesn’t think people are “talking enough” about stars Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio’s performances in the blockbuster.
The epic drama set aboard the doomed ship on its maiden voyage in 1912 saw Winslet and DiCaprio play star-crossed lovers Rose and Jack, Who are pulled together during the journey despite their different backgrounds.
After a hugely successful release that saw them both become stars, the film went on to garner 11 Academy Awards – equaling the all-time record set by Ben-Hur in 1959 and later matched by The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King in 2003.
It also became one of the highest-grossing films of all time, only pushed from the top spot years later by Landau and writer-director James Cameron’s Avatar in 2009, and Avengers: Endgame sneaks into second place in 2019.
Reflecting on the film’s legacy 25 years later at Avatar: The Way Of Water premiered at Leicester Square in London on Tuesday night, Landau was eager to talk about the performances of the film’s protagonists, crediting them with some of Titanic’s success.
“My view of the Titanic hasn’t changed,” he said Metro.nl.
“I’m so blown away that it continues to be part of the public consciousness, but Jim [Cameron] wrote that in the script and Kate and Leo gave us these two performances — and I don’t think people talk enough about the performances they gave us in that movie to create the ultimate love story.”
Kate Winslet was recognized for her acting with an Oscar nomination, but lost in the lead actress category to Helen Hunt for As Good as It Gets.
Cameron, who recently said he thought Winslet had become “a little traumatized” by the scale of the Titanic, also revealed that DiCaprio almost lost the role that made him a household name because he refused to read lines to him.
Having already cast Winslet as young socialite Rose Dewitt-Bukater, Cameron arranged for DiCaprio to return for a chemistry test with her after being “charmed” by the Romeo + Juliet actor during their first meeting.
“He didn’t know he was going to test, he thought it was another meeting to meet Kate. And I said, “We’ll go through some lines and I’ll videotape it,” Cameron told GQ.
‘And [Leo] said, “You mean I’m reading?” And I said “yes.” And he said, “I don’t read.”‘
At that point, Cameron remembered simply shaking DiCaprio’s hand and saying to him, “Well, thanks for stopping by.”
DiCaprio was apparently shocked by the stipulation that he had to read to get the part, but Cameron explained that this “massive film” would take years off his life, while DiCaprio would “do five other things…and that’s going to I don’t’. F**k it up by making the wrong casting decision’.
“So you either read or you don’t get the part,” he said.
Fortunately, despite DiCaprio’s reluctance—which Cameron recalled made “every ounce of his being so negative”—he was able to transform into Jack as soon as the director called to action.
Cameron remembered it as “dark clouds had opened up and the sun’s rays came down and lit up Jack.”
Landau and Cameron team up again for the Avatar sequel, in which protagonist Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) lives with his new family formed on the planet Pandora; he is now a father to several children with Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), including adopted 14-year-old Kiri, a new role played by recurring actress Sigourney Weaver, 73.
When a known threat returns to finish what started earlier, Jake must team up with Neytiri and the army of the Na’vi race to protect their planet.
Avatar: The Way of Water hits theaters December 16.
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LAKE : James Cameron says Kate Winslet was “traumatized” by the Titanic
