Titanic director denies ‘offensive rumours’ linking him to OceanGate film

By Ellie Iorizzo, PA Senior Entertainment Reporter

James Cameron has confronted false rumours that claimed he was linked to a film about the fatal implosion of the Titan submersible that killed all five people on board during a voyage to the Titanic shipwreck.

The Hollywood filmmaker, who directed 1997 Oscar-winning film Titanic with Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, quashed reports about his involvement in the development of an OceanGate film on Saturday.

On Twitter, the 68-year-old wrote: “I don’t respond to offensive rumours in the media usually, but I need to now.

“I’m NOT in talks about an OceanGate film, nor will I ever be.”

I don’t respond to offensive rumors in the media usually, but I need to now. I’m NOT in talks about an OceanGate film, nor will I ever be.

— James Cameron (@JimCameron) July 15, 2023

Cameron, who has visited the wreckage of the famous ocean liner 33 times, was outspoken last month when the Titan submersible lost contact with tour operator OceanGate Expeditions an hour and 45 minutes into the two-hour descent to the wreckage.

He previously told ABC News that he was “struck by the similarity” of the Titan submersible tragedy and the sinking of the Titanic in 1912.

British adventurer Hamish Harding and father and son Shahzada and Suleman Dawood were killed on board the deep-sea vessel, alongside OceanGate Expeditions’ chief executive Stockton Rush and French national Paul-Henri Nargeolet.

Wreckage from the submersible was later recovered from the ocean floor near the Titanic, with large pieces of debris transported to shore in St John’s, Canada.