In the dramatic finale of Titanic, would Jack have fitted onto the floating door on which Rose is already lying? This question has been on the minds of film fans for years. A truly big question that only the creator of the film himself could answer. James Cameron has now found the answer on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Titanic in a documentary for National Geographic. With a replica of props and several stunt people, the successful director had the famous scene recreated and came up with surprising results.
Could Jack have been saved?
James Cameron is on everyone’s lips right now. His latest coup, Avatar 2, is breaking box office records almost every day, and with Avatar 3, 4 and 5 the franchise is already well underway. But before the director conjured up the blue navigation system on the screen, he had a similar success with Titanic 25 years ago.
Even then, one scene divided the audience: when in the sad-dramatic finale Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) is left behind and dies because there is only room for one person on the wooden door floating in the water, namely his great love Rose (Kate Winslet). . Many fans think that Jack would have just fit on the plank and survived the sinking of the ship.
To settle the question once and for all, James Cameron started an experiment in a new documentary for National Geographic: He had the scene recreated in detail, rebuilt props from the film and finally had two stunt people reenact the dramatic finale.
The result: With a few twists and in certain positions, Jack could have actually survived! However, you have to put a big “maybe” on this statement, because when playing through the scene there were also scenarios in which the whole thing would have ended far less well.
And one more thing to keep in mind: In the film, both characters have just had what is probably the worst day of their lives and are more than exhausted. In addition, as a great hero, Jack would probably never have exposed his beloved rose to such a danger and would rather have sacrificed himself. That’s exactly what he does in Titanic.
James Cameron continues on the road to success
In the meantime, alongside Avatar and Titanic, James Cameron has made it into the top 5 of the most successful films three times with his latest coup, Avatar: The Way of Water! And the success of Avatar 2 doesn’t seem to end either.
Incidentally, the documentary in which Cameron conducted the experiment was made as part of Titanic’s 25th anniversary. On National Geographic, he explores the controversy in the Titanic: 25 Years Later special. And the film about the famous ship and its enamored passengers will actually come to the cinema again here in Germany! On February 9, 2023 the time has come.
