Movies
Who was the artist behind Rose’s nude sketch in ‘Titanic’?
Years after its initial release, fans now know who the artist behind the infamous ‘Titanic’ sketch is.
It turns out that Leonardo DiCaprio isn’t the talented young artist his role in ‘Titanic’ portrayed him to be.
In the scene where Rose (Kate Winslet) is fully nude with nothing but the Heart of the Ocean necklace on, and instructing her lover Jack (DiCaprio) to “draw me like one of your French girls,” those aren’t actually Dicaprio’s hands the audience is seeing create the sketch.
They’re actually James Cameron’s.
In a 2017 interview with Stephen Colbert, commemorating the 20th anniversary of the film, which is now celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, Winslet explained that it isn’t DiCaprio’s drawing.
“No, James Cameron actually drew that. Maybe no one even knows that until this moment right now.” she said. “James Cameron drew that and he did actually sketch me.”
She also clarified that she wasn’t entirely nude like the scene depicts, but rather in a bathing suit while he worked on the drawing.
James Cameron’s artistry
Although fans of the movie likely didn’t know the details, Cameron is not shy about his love of drawing. In 2021, he released a book of personal artwork and sketches, titled ‘Tech Noir: The Art of James Cameron.’
The book showcases his creative process for directing, which often began with his sketches, and includes his artworks from his early youth and later films.
The scene’s lasting impact
The sketch is one of the most recognizable scenes from the three-and-a-half-hour-long film. Winslet has previously explained how it’s still brought to her attention years later.
In 2014 she told Yahoo! Movies UK that she often gets asked to sign autographs of printed versions of the sketch, but typically says no to the request.
“I don’t sign that one,” Winslet explained. “It feels very uncomfortable. Why would you do that? ... They were asking me to sign it.”
“People ask me to sign that one a lot, and actually, there’s a photo of it as well that someone’s lifted from a still of the film.
“That photo gets passed around. It’s like, ‘No, I didn’t mean for it to be a photograph that I would end up seeing 16, 17 years later.’ It is still haunting me, it’s quite funny, really.”