“The Room Was Silenced”: It could have been a disaster, it became an all-time smash hit

When talking about Titanic, directed by James Cameron in 1997, it is hard to imagine that the production of a feature film could have been chaotic to the point of presenting an industrial disaster.

Indeed, the great classic worn by Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet has long been the biggest success of world cinema and is often cited as one of the greatest films of all time. With an international gross of $2.26 billion, it was surpassed only 12 years later by Avatar, still directed by James Cameron.

Titanic is now the 4th biggest blockbuster of all time, behind Avatar, Avengers: Endgame and Avatar 2. But its commercial triumph was not absolutely won, and the battle was difficult for James Cameron and his producer, John Landau.

The latter, unfortunately, died in 2024, following the filmmaker in all his projects after Titanic, carrying out titanic works on Avatar and its sequel. On November 4, his memoirs will be published in the US under the title bigger picture. The Hollywood Reporter The teacher published an extract in which he returns to the difficult preparation of the Titanic.

Titanic, the bet is far won

James Cameron, as a universal perfectionist, he wanted the perfect place to build his sets, including a replica of the Titanic. We should also be able to set up a giant tank to shoot scenes at sea. “It took us a year to look for places. We traveled all over the world”John Landau explained.

It took us a year to look for locations. We have traveled all over the world.

“Finally, we found the perfect location in the most unlikely place: Rosarito, Mexico. Unlikely, since the Titanic sank in the icy waters of the North Atlantic, Mexico is a sunny country. With a little imagination, you could almost see it: a building that would have been a ship and an icy sea.– the producer confided.

The place was perfect for him to build a huge water tank to simulate an ocean. The film crew could also build a Southampton dock, a games room and a seaside tavern. According to John Landau, there was room for the interior of the cabins, the wheelhouse, the engine room and the dining room, the lounges.

Convince James Cameron

The most difficult thing was convincing James Cameron, who did not want to come and visit the place until the 20th Century Fox studio gave his approval. But it was not possible without prior confirmation of the place that will host the shoot. In fact, the studio was reluctant to give the deal without a fully completed budget. Therefore, it was necessary to choose the place with certainty, otherwise nothing could be done, because the costs had to be calculated.

“Fox wouldn’t greenlight until James Cameron came along; Jimmy wouldn’t come along until he got the deal. Someone had to give up, and as always, it wasn’t going to be Jimmy.”revealed by John Landau.

Finally, after an intense battle for the producer, the studio finally agreed. According to him, Cameron has his own method, which he finally understood. First he hesitates, then he changes his mind. “He must control everything; his mark must be visible on every decision,” emphasized Landau. Finally, the director will agree: “This is perfect! This is the only place we can film!”she chanted.

Titanic, shipwreck and chaos?

Later, during filming, there were constant rumors of a complete disaster, a completely chaotic shoot and huge budget overruns. The press swarmed the production to get the scoop on the most expensive movie in history and the impending industrial accident.

“Some articles put the cost at $200 million. Others speculated even larger sums. They compared it to the Titanic, which was still months away. Ishtar, water world and Cleopatra“The Biggest Fall in Hollywood History”John Landau recalls.

They compared Titanic, which was still months away from being released, to the biggest flop in Hollywood history.

The budget actually doubled, which was a huge risk at the time, even for one of the biggest film studios. From an envelope of 110 million GEL issued by Fox, the bill very quickly increased to 200 million. So there were rumors in the press talking about disastrous acting or completely botched special effects. Failure was guaranteed for journalists.

“None of it was true, but rumors grow fast. Perception becomes reality.”Jon Landau worried. Because of all this, there was a bad atmosphere in the studio, which made things difficult. And Cameron had a hard time justifying the 3h 15m length, cutting hair at the studio’s request, but he never gave up.

fatal support

At a time when everyone thought Titanic would be the biggest industrial disaster in movie history, James Cameron and Jon Landau had the unexpected support of tycoon Rupert Murdoch, president of Fox Corporation.

“Jim and I passed him in the hallway of the studio in the darkest days of post-production. We stopped to talk. I said we’re your least favorite people in the world right now. Rupert had the perfect answer. Without hesitation, he said, I’ll wait until I see the film and then tell you.”revealed by John Landau.

I will wait to see the movie and then I will tell you.

After that, the producer and his director were able to calmly complete the post-production, but were very nervous during the preview. The community immediately responded very well, much to the relief of both men, and the phenomenon grew like wildfire. Titanic was a hit and the rest is history.

What’s more, during the premiere of the feature film, James Cameron and Jon Landau sneaked into the theater and took seats on the aisle just as the lights were fading. Then the movie started.

“Titanic appeared in giant letters on the screen. The room fell dead silent. One minute, two minutes, three minutes… silence again. We started whispering to each other: Oh my God! We’re dead, we’re dead. Then the atmosphere changed. The audience was captivated. Finally, they were screaming and crying.”Exposed by John Landau.

There was no industrial disaster, the film became a great cinema classic, which finally put an end to all rumors about the disaster. The bet was risky, and it paid off with the Landau-Cameron duo again on Avatar in 2009, then The Way of Water in 2022.