Ten Things You Didn’t Know about the Movie Titanic

Titanic was the first film to have two people nominated for an Oscar for portraying the same character

Both Kate Winslet and Gloria Stuart received Oscar nominations their performances as younger and older Rose, respectively. Winslet was nominated for Best Lead Actress, while Stuart got a nod for Best Supporting Actress. Shockingly, this was the first time that any two actors, male or female, had been nominated for Academy Awards for the playing the same character. It happened again in 2001 when Judi Dench and Kate Winslet (yet again) were nominated for the film Iris.

Kate Winslet didn’t wear a wetsuit while filming

For future reference, cold water can get you sick. During the entirety of production on Titanic, Kate Winslet would not wear a wetsuit during scenes that took place in the water, no matter how cold it got. This turned out to be quite the bad idea for Kate, as she ended up getting pneumonia, causing her to almost quit the production. Thankfully, Kate got better and stayed on the film, allowing all of us viewers to enjoy her pitch perfect performance as Rose. (For the record, I’m kind of in love with Kate Winslet and her acting abilities.

Reportedly, the first cut of Titanic was 36 hours long

I say “reportedly” because this fact only comes from the film’s Oscar winning composer, James Korner. I feel like he must be exaggerating a little bit because for one thing, I don’t believe that they actually got that much footage and also because that would mean that James Cameron is entirely insane. Actually, the more I sit with the second part of that statement, the more possible I think it might becomes. Cameron is a tad bit eccentric and is well-known for making his films incredibly long.

Madonna was considered for the role of Rose

Picture Tom Cruise and Madonna as Jack and Rose – we have a totally different Titanic film, don’t we? Fortunately, as was the case with Cruise and McConaughey, the Material Girl’s casting never came to be. And honestly, that’s the best thing that could have happened. I have nothing personally against Madonna, but James Cameron had to know that if Titanic wanted to be taken seriously as a film, it need real, vibrant performances from its actors. Kate Winslet, who is easily one of the best actresses of her generation, was much more equipped for that job than any other actress could have possibly been.

Gloria Stuart (who played the elderly, present day version of Rose) was the only person involved with the film who was actually alive during the Titanic’s maiden voyage in 1912

Gloria Stuart was born on July 4, 1910, so even though she wasn’t involved with any of the past scenes that occur on the Titanic in the film, she was the only person on set that was actually alive for the real life event, even if she wasn’t even two years old when it happened. Stuart, like the character of Rose, lived to see 100. She passed away in her sleep in September of 2010 after battling lung cancer for five years.

In order to make people in the water appear frozen, the makeup team used a powder on the actors’ faces, which then crystallized when exposed to water

Nothing’s sadder than the end of Titanic, where we don’t just see Rose have to let Jack go but also bear witness to all the death that the ship’s sinking caused. All the bodies in the water of those who have frozen to death (along with Kate Winslet’s barely alive Rose) seriously look as if they are human icicles. Apparently, the makeup team for Titanic was able to create this amazing effect by using a specific powder on the actors’ faces. This powder would crystallize when exposed to water – thus giving those who met their end in the unbearably cold Atlantic Ocean their frost-covered exteriors.