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Titanic producer Jon Landau has said that he doesn’t think people ‘talk enough’ about the performances stars Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio give in the blockbuster movie.
The epic drama set onboard the doomed ship on its maiden voyage in 1912 saw Winslet and DiCaprio play star-crossed lovers Rose and Jack, who are drawn together during the voyage despite their differing backgrounds.
After a hugely successful release, which made them both stars, the film went on to scoop up 11 Academy Awards – equalling 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 sneaking into second in 2019.
Reflecting on the film’s legacy 25 years on at the Avatar: The Way Of Water premiere in London’s Leicester Square on Tuesday night, Landau was keen to talk up the performances of the movie’s lead actors and credit them with some of Titanic’s success.
‘My perspective on Titanic has not changed,’ he told Metro.co.uk.
‘I am so overwhelmed that it stays part of the public consciousness, but Jim [Cameron] wrote that into 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.’
Leo and Kate’s performances in the epic love story are underrated, producer Landau said (Picture: CBS via Getty Images)
Kate Winslet was recognised for her acting with an Oscar nomination but lost out in the leading actress category to Helen Hunt for As Good as It Gets.
Cameron, who recently said he thought that Winslet had been left ‘a bit traumatised’ by Titanic’s scale, also revealed that DiCaprio almost lost out on the role that made him a household name because he refused to read lines for him.
Having already cast Winslet as young socialite Rose Dewitt-Bukater, Cameron arranged for DiCaprio to return for a chemistry test with her after he had been ‘charmed’ by the Romeo + Juliet actor in their first meeting.
The acclaimed producer made the comments at the premiere of Avatar sequel The Way of Water (Picture: Invision
‘He didn’t know he was going to test, he thought it was another meeting to meet Kate. And I said, “We’ll run some lines and I’ll video it,” Cameron told GQ.
‘And [Leo] said: “You mean I’m reading?” And I said “yeah.” And he said, “I don’t read.”’
At this point, Cameron recalled he simply shook DiCaprio’s hand and told him: “Well, thanks for coming by.”
DiCaprio was apparently shocked at the stipulation that he must read to get the part, but Cameron explained that this ‘giant movie’ would take up years of his life while DiCaprio would be ‘gone doing five other things… and I’m not going to f**k it up by making a wrong decision in casting’.
‘So you’re going to read or you’re not going to get the part,’ he stated.
Titanic clinched 11 Academy Awards the year it was released (Picture: AFP via Getty Images)
Luckily, despite DiCaprio’s reluctance – which Cameron remembered made ‘every ounce of his being so negative’ – he was able to turn into Jack as soon as the director called action.
Cameron remembered it as ‘dark clouds had opened up and the sun rays came down and lit up Jack’.
Landau and Cameron have teamed up again for the Avatar sequel, which finds protagonist Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) living with his newfound family formed on the planet of Pandora; he’s now a father to several kids with Neytiri (Zoe Saldana), including the adopted 14-year-old Kiri, a new part played by returning actress Sigourney Weaver, 73.
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Once a familiar threat returns to finish what was previously started, Jake must work with Neytiri and the army of the Na’vi race to protect their planet.
Avatar: The Way of Water is released in cinemas on December 16.
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MORE : James Cameron says Kate Winslet was ‘traumatised’ by Titanic
‘ I don’t think people talk enough about the performances.’
