Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet sadly couldn’t recreate Titanic’s success with their 2008 drama Revolutionary Road. The two took the world by storm in James Cameron’s 1997 blockbuster and have remained close friends ever since. Seeing them reunite over a decade later was exciting, even if their second film together would never see the success of Titanic.
The Titanic leads were excited to reunite for another film, and their chemistry was as evident as before, though their characters had a much different relationship. While the Titanic movie ending makes it so it can’t be considered a light-hearted movie, Revolutionary Road was undoubtedly darker. Unfortunately, Revolutionary Road didn’t benefit much from Winslet and DiCaprio’s onscreen reunion, even if they did an impressive job on the film.
Revolutionary Road Wasn’t Intended To Be As Big As Titanic (& Never Could Be)
Titanic had a lot working in its favor, from the $200 million budget to its Romeo and Juliet-inspired love story. While Revolutionary Road shared Titanic’s beloved leads, it was never going to live up to James Cameron’s film. In fact, it was never supposed to be as big as Titanic, which is currently the 4th highest-grossing movie of all time. Revolutionary Road is a lesser-known story based on the novel by Richard Yates, while Titanic was based on one of the greatest tragedies in history.
It definitely should have been expected that Revolutionary Road couldn’t be as big as Titanic. While it seems Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio would have drawn in greater audiences, the plot about a married couple searching for fulfillment in their mundane lives wasn’t as appealing as Titanic’s rich girl, poor boy romance. It is also important to note that Cameron is a massively successful writer and director who currently holds three of the top four spots on the list of highest-grossing films of all time.
Whether it is pure talent or the magic touch, Cameron clearly knows the secret to success, and this information paid off when he was creating Titanic. It wasn’t just Winslet and DiCaprio that made Titanic what it was, but the mastermind behind the film who’s responsible for how iconic it has become. Titanic and Revolutionary Road also shared a tragic ending, though Revolutionary Road’s focused on heavy subject matter while Titanic’s tugged at the audience’s heartstrings.
Titanic Crushed Its Box Office Competition, Revolutionary Road Was Defeated By It
Unfortunately, utilizing Winslet and DiCaprio’s chemistry could not help Revolutionary Road thrive at the box office. Both films were released at the end of the year, with Titanic premiering on December 19, 1997, and Revolutionary Road hitting theaters on December 15, 2008. These are both prime times for releasing a film, as moviegoers tend to visit theaters a lot around the holidays. However, the films have drastically different target audiences, and it’s easier to sell a love story starring a 90s heartthrob than it is to sell the somber drama that is Revolutionary Road.
It also didn’t help that Revolutionary Road had some tough competition as Marley & Me, Valkyrie, and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button were all in theaters in the same month. Audiences seemed to gravitate toward the other options instead of Winslet and DiCaprio’s film. Revolutionary Road made $76 million dollars at the box office against a $35 million budget. While it isn’t necessarily a box office failure, it certainly underperformed.
Revolutionary Road Was Massively (& Wrongly) Snubbed At The Oscars
Although the Titanic stars were the perfect choices for the 1997 film, DiCaprio and Winslet’s performances in Revolutionary Road were arguably much stronger. DiCaprio’s character in the latter film was much more complex than the easy-going and selfless Jack Dawson. The film explores a different dynamic between Winslet and DiCaprio, including a passionate fight scene that proves the two can argue on screen as well as they can fall in love. During award season, Titanic was nominated for 14 Oscars and won 11 of them, while Revolutionary Road was nominated for only three and didn’t win any.
It was a shame since both actors outdid themselves in the 2008 film, and it would have been an opportunity for DiCaprio to receive the nomination he did not get for Titanic. Most of Cameron’s award success was based on direction, score, and other nonacting categories, and DiCaprio isn’t often praised for his acting as Jack Dawson. While Revolutionary Road didn’t have the commercial success of Titanic, it had incredible acting performances that the Academy could have acknowledged.
