‘Titanic’ movie 25th anniversary: Kate Winslet, Leonardo DiCaprio and more of the cast then and now

The epic love story “Titanic” is celebrating its 25th anniversary today!

The movie told the story of Jack Dawson and Rose Dewitt Bukater as they fell in love despite their difference in class status and the fact that Rose was already engaged to another man. Their love story was told amid the backdrop of the luxury steamship, the RMS Titanic, and the unfortunate accident that caused it to sink.

Many of the film’s stars had already made names for themselves in the industry by the time the movie was released, and only helped to propel each other further into stardom. Some of the stars went on to receive and be nominated for Academy Awards.

Kate Winslet

Kate Winslet brought the character of Rose to life with only a few credits to her name with movies like “Heavenly Creatures” and “Sense and Sensibility,” the second of which earned Winslet her first Academy Award nomination. Her second nomination was for her portrayal of Rose in “Titanic.”

After the success of “Titanic,” Winslet went on to star in many critically acclaimed films, such as “Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind,” “Finding Neverland,” “Iris,” “Steve Jobs” and “Little Children.” She has been nominated for seven Academy Awards and four Emmy Awards, winning for her role in “Mare of Easttown” and the miniseries “Mildred Pierce.”

Winslet reunited with her “Titanic” co-star, Leonardo DiCaprio, in the 2008 movie “Revolutionary Road,” in which they played a married couple in the ’50s. That same year, Winslet starred in “The Reader” as Hanna Schmitz, a woman on trial for Nazi war crimes during World War II. She won her first and only Academy Award for the role.

Throughout the years, Winslet has continued taking on more dramatic roles in films such as “The Dressmaker,” “The Mountain Between Us” and “Ammonite,” mixing in the occasional lighthearted film like “The Holiday,” “Flushed Away” and the “Divergent” series. Most recently, she stars in the series “I Am.” She plays the mother of her real life daughter Mia Threapleton in the episode “I Am Ruth.”

In 1996, Winslet met Jim Threapleton when he was acting as assistant director on the film “Hideous Kinky.” The two got married in 1998, welcomed their daughter, Mia, in 2000 before ultimately getting divorced in 2001. Not long after, Winslet married Sam Mendes in 2003, welcoming their son, Joe, later that year. Amid rumors Mendes was cheating on Winslet, the couple divorced in 2010 after seven years together. In 2011, during a house fire, Winslet met Edward Abel Smith, who then went by Ned Rocknroll. The two got married a year later in 2012. They welcomed their son, Bear Blaze, in 2014.

Winslet told “Good Morning America” she will likely watch “Titanic” in honor of its anniversary, despite not enjoying watching herself in movies. She also explained that while it’s been 25 years since the movie came out, it’s been much longer for the actors, saying she turned 21 on set and is now 47.
The actress teamed up with director James Cameron again for “Avatar: The Way of Water.”

Leonardo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio was already an Academy Award-nominated actor before taking on the role of Jack Dawson in “Titanic,” nominated for his work in “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” in 1994.

After “Titanic,” he went on to star in a string of critically acclaimed films, including but not limited to “Gangs of New York,” “Catch Me If You Can,” “Shutter Island,” “The Departed,” “Inception,” as well as “The Aviator” and “Blood Diamond,” both of which earned him an Academy Award nomination.

His other notable works include “Revolutionary Road,” in which he reunited with his “Titanic” co-star Winslet, “J. Edgar,” “The Great Gatsby,” “Django Unchained” and “The Wolf of Wall Street,” for which he was once again nominated for an Academy Award.

In 2016, after his fifth Academy Award nomination, DiCaprio won the coveted Oscar statue for his work on “The Revenant.” In the movie, he played an American frontiersman named Hugh Glass who gets stranded in the woods after his company is attacked. When making the film, DiCaprio took method acting to the next level by actually sleeping in a bear carcass and doing the majority of stunts himself.
The actor is very vocal about his fight to end climate change, dedicating his Academy Award acceptance speech to raising awareness and making his latest film, “Don’t Look Up,” an analogy on the dangers of the global issue.

While it’s hard to imagine “Titanic” without DiCaprio, director James Cameron revealed he almost didn’t get the part. Cameron told GQ he met with DiCaprio early in the casting process, but he almost lost out when he refused to read for the part. Cameron claims he called DiCaprio’s bluff, who continued to groan and complain about reading the lines before proceeding with the audition.