It’s 25 years since the Oscar-winning behemoth Titanic, staring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, first appeared on our screens.
The story of the doomed ocean liner, which set sail from our very own Belfast and sank on its maiden voyage in 1912, was well known 80 odd years after the disaster. In the decades following the disaster it featured in dramas across film screen, TV and radio, but it was the James Cameron directed epic that really cemented the story in modern minds.
All the more impressive considering the leading lights, DiCaprio and Winslet, were just 23 and 22 respectively at the time of the movie release.
How Old Were the Actors and Characters in Titanic?
How Old was Leonardo DiCaprio in Titanic?
Leonardo DiCaprio was 23 at the time of Titanic’s general release worldwide.
Although that’s pretty ridiculously young to pickup a starring role in a blockbuster, DiCaprio had already begun to feature quite prominently on the big screen throughout the early 1990s. Starring roles in the likes of What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), The Basketball Diaries (1995) and Romeo + Juliet (1996) meant audiences were already familiar with the young heartthrob.
Obviously Titanic seen DiCaprio hit a new level of fame, much like his costar.
Interestingly, the movie was released a month earlier in Tokyo (November in Japan, late December everywhere else) meaning DiCaprio was actually 22 during the first official screening as the actor’s birthday is November 11th.
How Old was Jack Dawson in Titanic?
The fictional character of Jack Dawson was 20 years old at the time of Titanic’s maiden voyage.
How Old was Kate Winslet in Titanic?
Kate Winslet was born approximately 11 months after DiCaprio, in 1975, and had just turned 22 in October 1997 before the launch of Titanic.
Winslet was an up-and-coming actress at the time of filming and release, but hadn’t yet reached the same heights as her costar. She did however feature in a number of early 1990s films as well, including Sense and Sensibility (1995), Jude (1996) and Hamlet (1996).
Again, it was her starring role as Rose that propelled her towards international recognition and global fame.
How Old was Rose in Titanic?
Rose DeWitt Bukater was 17 years old at the time of the voyage.
It shows how different the times were when her finance, at the time of the ship’s launch, was Cal Hockley who was supposedly aged 30.
In the quarter century that’s followed both actors have sustained incredible careers and cemented their status as some of the most talented Hollywood stars of the modern era.
The two joined forces once again 11 years later in 2008s Revolutionary Road. The film follows a married couple living in 1950s post-war America, struggling to maintain their relationship amidst various personal problems.
