When Titanic was released in 1997, all of us probably bawled our eyes out when Jack Dawson (Leonardo DiCaprio) met his inevitable demise at the film’s ending.
However, many took issue with the way the film had ended as many fans argued that Jack could have survived the shipwreck if only Rose DeWitt Bukater (Kate Winslet) made a room for him in the makeshift raft.
This theory was even more fueled when Mythbusters hosts Jamie Hyneman and Adam Savage conducted their own test in 2012 and came up with a conclusion that Jack would have survived the freezing waters if only he climbed aboard the raft.
Now, 25 years later, Titanic director James Cameron is ready to put the famous theory to rest as he clapped back with a scientific test to prove why Jack could have not survived the shipwreck.
Ahead of the 25th anniversary of Titanic, National Geographic recently released a teaser for the upcoming documentary, Titanic: 25 Years Later with James Cameron.
In the clip, Cameron addressed the theory by scientifically recreating the exact film sequence where Jack and Rose have to survive in the freezing waters when the Titanic ship sank.
“So now, let’s do the real test. Let’s put them through a simulation of all the things that Jack and Rose went through,” Cameron narrated. “So we did exactly what they did in the movie, except that we doubled the time for every stage of it because our water wasn’t as cold.”
In the footage, the stunt doubles, who have the same body type as Winslet and DiCaprio during the film, were dressed in the similar clothing used in Titanic and recited the characters’ lines as they dived into the 56-degree water.
Cameron then explained the impact of cold water on the body and heart, which made him curious as to what that did to Jack’s situation at the time.
But boy, things weren’t looking for the Jack double. In the footage, it showed that the Jack double was able to climb onto the raft, however, he was seen shivering uncontrollably.
According to Cameron, a variety of tests were conducted to debunk the famous theory, yet, one answer was crystal clear: only one could survive the freezing waters of the Atlantic Ocean.
“We have since done a thorough forensic analysis with a hypothermia expert who reproduced the raft from the movie,” Cameron told the Toronto Sun in December 2022.
“We put them in ice water and we tested to see whether they could have survived through a variety of methods and the answer was, there was no way they both could have survived. Only one could survive,” he continued.
Cameron also explained why Jack needed to die in the film. “It’s like Romeo and Juliet. It’s a movie about love and sacrifice and mortality. The love is measured by the sacrifice,” he said.
So, there you have it, folks! At least, our questions will be answered and we don’t have to keep guessing anymore.
Titanic: 25 Years Later with James Cameron is set to drop on February 5. Meanwhile, a remastered version of Titanic will return to theaters on February 14.
Titanic was originally released in 1997 and followed the stories of a young couple who came from different social classes and fell in love aboard the Titanic ship. The film starred DiCaprio and Winslet as Jack and Rose, respectively, with Billy Zane, Kathy Bates, Frances Fisher, Gloria Stuart, Bernard Hill, Jonathan Hyde, Victor Garber, and Bill Paxton.
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