‘No more than 1m70’: why James Cameron asked for smaller actors on the set of Titanic

If Titanic is a monumental film in more ways than one – budget, influence, resonance with the public, James Cameron gave his casting instructions before filming: not to have only actors of a certain size in the picture, but why?

With an estimated budget of $200 million (the most expensive film in history at the time), Titanic cost more to film than it did to build the actual ship at the turn of the century. This shows that the film needs to succeed at the box office! But even with this significant budget, Cameron wants to become more grandiose on the screen, and for this he resorts to the most inventive trick:

But why were 80 people sick on the set?!

We only chose small extras to make our set look bigger. We rejected anyone over 1.70m. And thanks to this casting, we won almost a million dollars in image rendering.

James Cameron, or how to keep the sharp mind of a film student, even at the helm of a huge machine worth hundreds of millions of dollars. With “small” additions to the frame, the set looks more impressive, as well as a higher ceiling. It’s a good idea to give a sense of grandeur.

What about the movie stars?

For reference, Kate Winslet fit perfectly in the guide with her 1.69m, but Leonardo DiCaprio less so, as he still reached 1.83m!

Titanic celebrates its 27th anniversary next year (1997), and to mark the occasion, the film will be released in a restored 4K version on January 24th. You’ll find the entire Blu-ray of bonuses there. In total, there will be 15 hours of behind-the-scenes footage, including a never-before-seen documentary with Kate Winslet, Jon Landau and the director himself, James Cameron.