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Titanic: James Cameron's Illustrated Screenplay

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Titanic: James Cameron's Illustrated Screenplay contains the shooting script of the most popular film of all time. An invaluable reference for film students and fans, this book details the evolution of the epic romance from script to screen, including scenes and dialogue cut from the final film, as well as annotations explaining footage seen in the final cut, yet not contained in the screenplay. Never-before-seen photographs of the stars, storyboards for sequences never filmed, and an in-depth interview with Cameron make Titanic: James Cameron's Illustrated Screenplay an essential companion to the #1 bestseller James Cameron's Titanic.

153 pages, Paperback

First published May 5, 1996

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About the author

James Cameron

65 books107 followers
Librarian Note: James^^^^^^^Cameron. There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.

James Francis Cameron is an Academy Award-winning Canadian-American director, producer and screenwriter. He is noted for his action/science fiction films, which are often highly innovative and financially successful. Thematically, James Cameron's films generally explore the relationship between humanity and technology. Cameron created the Terminator franchise, serving as co-writer and director for The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Later, he wrote and directed the film Titanic, which earned 11 Academy Awards and grossed over US$1.8 billion worldwide. To date, his directorial efforts have grossed approximately US$3 billion, unadjusted for inflation. After a string of landmark feature films including The Terminator, Aliens, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, True Lies, The Abyss, and Titanic, Cameron turned his focus to documentary filmmaking and the co-development of the digital 3-D Fusion Camera System. He is currently working on a return to feature filmmaking with the science fiction film Avatar, which will make use of the Fusion Camera System technology. Avatar is scheduled for release in December of 2009.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
Profile Image for Persephone's Pomegranate.
108 reviews620 followers
September 8, 2025
I will never understand how a man who directed the first two Terminator movies and Aliens also created one of the greatest love stories ever. It’s perplexing that someone who has been divorced four times crafted the most perfect male character, Jack Dawson.

I read ‘James Cameron’s Titanic’ a few years ago and finally got around to reading ‘Titanic: James Cameron’s Illustrated Screenplay.’ I think I love the second one even more. The book features over 300 photographs, scene descriptions, and the screenplay, which includes many deleted and altered scenes.

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The book begins with an interesting interview featuring James Cameron, which all enthusiasts of Titanic lore, both the actual event and the film, will appreciate. For example, the character of Brock Lovett, portrayed by the late Bill Paxton, was inspired by Mel Fisher, a treasure hunter who dedicated ten to fifteen years of his life searching for the wreck of the Atocha. Tragically, Fisher’s son died during their underwater explorations. The character was also loosely based on James Cameron himself.

The character of Jack Dawson was inspired by the writer Jack London, author of “Call of the Wild,” “White Fang,” and “The Sea Wolf.”

The character of Rose DeWitt Bukater was loosely based on Beatrice Wood, whom James Cameron discovered when Bill Paxton’s wife loaned him “I Shock Myself,” the autobiography of Beatrice.

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My favorite deleted scene:

The stars blaze overhead, so bright and clear you can see the Milky Way. Rose and Jack walk along the row of lifeboats. Still giddy from the party, they are singing a popular song 'Come Josephine In My Flying Machine.’ They fumble the words and break down laughing. They have reached the First Class Entrance, but don’t go straight in, not wanting the night to end. Rose grabs a davit and leans back, staring at the cosmos.

Rose: Isn’t it magnificent? So grand and endless.

He leans at the rail next to her, his hand just touching hers. It is the slightest contact imaginable, and all either one of them can feel is that square inch of skin where their hands are touching.

Rose: Look! A shooting star.

Jack: My father used to say that whenever you saw one, it was a soul going to heaven.

Rose: I like that. Aren’t we supposed to wish on it?

Jack looks at her, and finds that they are suddenly very close together. It would be so easy to move another couple of inches, to kiss her. Rose seems to be thinking the same thing.

Jack: What would you wish for?

After a beat, Rose pulls back.

Rose: Something I can’t have.
(she smiles sadly)

Goodnight, Jack. And thank you.


The movie centers on a forbidden romance between 17-year-old Rose DeWitt Bukater, from a wealthy family, and 20-year-old Jack Dawson, from a lower social class. Rose feels trapped by her demanding mother, Ruth, and her controlling fiancé, Cal. Jack is a talented artist who has traveled the world, despite being poor, which Rose admires. Rose desires to be free like Jack, but she knows she will never be able to make her own choices. Despite the many obstacles they face, the two fall in love.

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Rose: Jack, this is impossible. I can’t see you.

Jack: Rose, you’re no picnic… you’re a spoiled little brat even, but under that you’re a strong, pure heart, and you’re the most amazingly astounding girl I’ve ever known and -

Rose: Jack, I -

Jack: No wait. Let me try to get this out. You’re amazing… and I know I have nothing to offer you, Rose. I know that. But I’m involved now. You jump, I jump, remember? I can’t turn away without knowin’ you’re goin’ to be alright.

Rose: It’s not up to you to save me, Jack.

Jack: You’re right. Only you can do that.


One of the deleted scenes features Daniel and Mary Marvin, who were real teenage newlyweds. Despite their parents forbidding them to marry due to their young age, they eloped and got married in secret, spending their honeymoon on the Titanic. Daniel died at just 18 years old, while Mary survived and gave birth to their daughter a few months after the disaster.

Jack: You must do me this honor… promise me you will survive… that you will never give up… no matter what happens… no matter how hopeless… promise me now, and never let go of that promise.

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The best comment I read about this movie was: “He died for her; she lived for him.” I couldn’t have said it better myself.

There are a few deleted scenes that feature Brock interacting with Rose’s granddaughter, Lizzy. In the alternate ending, Brock, Lizzy, and the rest of the crew catch Rose just as she is about to throw the Heart of the Ocean into the water. Rose tells Brock that he is looking for treasure in the wrong place and that only life is truly priceless. In this moment, Brock finally lets go of his obsession, realizes he has been a fool, starts laughing, and asks Lizzy to dance.

I’ve never spoken of him until now, not to anyone.
(to Lizzy)
Not even your grandfather. A woman’s heart is a deep ocean of secrets. But now you all know there was a man named Jack Dawson, and that he saved me, in every way that a person can be saved.
(closing her eyes)
I don’t even have a picture of him. He exists now only in my memory.


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The last scene remains a topic of debate even to this day. The question of whether Rose is dreaming or if she has died is left ambiguous in both the movie and the screenplay. My interpretation of the ending has always been that Rose died and was reunited with Jack in the afterlife. Jack tells her, “You’re gonna die an old lady, warm in her bed,” before he dies.

Remember the scene after the dinner in the first-class dining saloon when Jack gives Rose a note that says, “Make it count. Meet me at the clock?” I believe Rose dies eighty-four years later, warm in her bed. She fulfilled her promise to Jack by living her life to the fullest; she made it “count.” In the end, she meets him at the clock. James Cameron shared his thoughts on the scene - When you love someone, you cannot imagine an end to that love… that you won’t be reunited. I get asked about the ending all the time. Is Rose dead, or is she dreaming? You decide.

A graceful pan across Rose’s shelf of carefully arranged pictures:

Rose as a young actress in California, radiant… a theatrically lit studio publicity shot… Rose and her husband, with their two children… Rose with her son at his college graduation… Rose with her children and grandchildren at her 70th birthday. A collage of images of a life lived well.

The pan stops on an image filling frame. Rose, circa 1920. She is at the beach, sitting on a horse at the surfline. The Santa Monica pier, with its roller coaster, is behind her. She is grinning, full of life.

We pan off the last picture to Rose herself, warm in her bunk. A profile shot. She is very still. She could be sleeping, or maybe something else.

CUT TO:

Blackness.

The wreck of the Titanic looms like a ghost out of the dark. It is lit by a kind of moonlight, a light of the mind. We pass over the endless forecastle deck to the superstructure, moving faster than subs can move… almost like we are flying.

We go inside, and the echoing sound of distant waltz music is heard. The rust fades away from the walls of the dark corridor and it is transformed… We emerge onto the grand staircase, lit by glowing chandeliers. The music is vibrant now, and the room is populated by men in tie and tails, women in gowns.

In POV we sweep down the staircase. The crowd of beautiful gentlemen and ladies turn as we descend toward them. At the bottom a man stands with his back to us… he turns and it is Jack. Smiling he holds his hand out toward us.

In a side angle Rose goes into his arms, a girl of 17. The passengers, officers and crew of the RMS Titanic smile and applaud in the utter silence of the abyss.
Profile Image for Jenna.
370 reviews
May 18, 2024
This was a quick read, and as a huge fan of the movie, I loved every minute. It was so interesting to see how much of what was filmed was cut from the movie, and I may be biased since I think the movie is perfect, but there were no deleted scenes I read that I thought should have been included to make the movie better.

I’m excited to watch the movie again with this new knowledge and appreciation for some of the scenes.
Profile Image for Lauren.
3,670 reviews142 followers
March 1, 2015
Such an exceptionally sad and dramatic tale! The heartbreaking love story caught me from the very beginning. I always love a good forbidden lover story.

I don't really like sad stories but this is one to enjoy again and again.
Profile Image for Lindsey Grewe.
228 reviews
April 22, 2024
This is an absolute must-have for any “Titanic” fan. I can’t believe this came out in 98 and I didn’t know about it all these years!!! I can still remember trying to print the screenplay (my poor parents if I had succeeded! 😂) while this was out there the whole time! Kind of like Rose having the Heart of the Ocean all along, lol!

This is the “Titanic” screenplay but not the version we see in the finished movie. A lot of that IS here, but there are also a lot of scenes that end up pretty different on screen, either through reworking the dialogue or the actors’ choices (a surprising number of things were ad libbed in filming!) I have seen the movie many, MANY times, so it a was really cool seeing these familiar scenes told in a different way. The book also included scenes that were cut out completely, both ones everyone knows about and some that were never actually filmed. Some of the latter did get photographed if not actually shot, so I got to see pictures of scenes I never knew existed! Some of these unknown deleted scenes were pretty elaborate, too, so those were fun to read. The *differences* from the finished product were a big reason why this screenplay was so cool to read!

The book also contained notes all throughout the screenplay explaining why certain things were deleted, changed, shot the way they were, moved to a different point in the story, etc, as well as interesting behind the scene tidbits related to various scenes. If you love the movie, it’s all very enjoyable to read! I still learned things I didn’t know before, despite my longtime love affair with the movie!

And of course, I still found myself crying reading the screenplay at the same parts I’d cry at watching the movie, lol, so reading the screenplay still gave me some of those Titanic-watching experiences!
Profile Image for Kim Leen.
4 reviews7 followers
August 27, 2021
A must have for every Titanic movie lover <3
Profile Image for cobra bubbles.
155 reviews
November 18, 2024
In his classic blockbuster detailing the hubris and class inequity of its first and final voyage, ‘Titanic: James Cameron’s Illustrated Screenplay’ offers a comprehensive insight into the making of Titanic.

The annotations accompanying the screenplay and the hundreds of images from the film serve to illuminate the differences between the written idea and the realisation of that idea on celluloid. Despite being an efficient filmmaker, his screenplays are only really brought to life when the cameras are turned on but Cameron sure does know what he wants before production even begins. Considering I liked the format, the structural choice of organising the annotations on the left page with the corresponding screenplay on the right is about as pants as the film’s original ending.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Profile Image for Anna Gomes.
395 reviews
January 21, 2024
Li logo depois de rever o filme no cinema e foi ótimo ver as cenas que não entraram e o contexto de algumas cosias que ficaram confusas no filme.
395 reviews3 followers
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December 20, 2019
Lot more of Helga’s story and her romance (?) with Fabrizo

Fabrizo’s alternative death. He gets off the boat and swims to a lifeboat, but Cal is there, beating people off with an oar. He hits Fabrizo with an oar, killing him

“Jack sees what she is pointing to, and they make for it together. It is a piece of wooden debris, intricately carved. He pushes her up and she slithers onto it belly down.
But when Jack tries to get up onto the thing, it tilts and submerges, almost dumping Rose off.”

Cal actually finds and recognizes Rose. She tells him that if he does anything, she’ll reveal all he has done. He asks what to tell her mother, and she says Rose died on the Titanic. Cal says he loves her, that she’s precious, and she tells him jewels are precious. He leaves, not recognizing her. Narration explains how he shot himself in the head thanks to the Depression.

Rose: Can you exchange one life for another? A caterpillar turns into a butterfly. If a mindless insect can do it, why couldn't I? Was it any more unimaginable than the sinking of the Titanic?

Alternate ending. Available on most DVDs as a deleted scene. Lovett sees that Rose has the diamond. She tells him she came back here to put the diamond where it belongs. Rose lets Lovett hold it, tells him he looks for treasure in the wrong place, then pulls back the necklace chain and tosses it into the ocean. Lovett looks to Lizzy, Rose’s daughter, and asks her for a dance.

As for the ending, “She could be sleeping, or something else”
Profile Image for Filipe Posteral.
29 reviews42 followers
March 30, 2020
One thing I realize reading this in my late 20s: the more life you have swept behind you, the more upsetting it becomes to see it swept away.
Profile Image for Tyra.
138 reviews4 followers
April 12, 2020
THIS WAS AMAZING! FOR ANYONE WHO LOVES THE MOVIE YOU NEED TO READ THIS AND SEE THE DIFFERENCES THEY MADE
Profile Image for Jay Wood.
111 reviews2 followers
August 1, 2020
A fantastic and super thorough breakdown of the script- with spot on notes from James Cameron discussing every detail of his 250 page script.
It’s a great single work of Screenwriting
Profile Image for Sarann.
143 reviews4 followers
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February 15, 2023
LOWE
(the worst moment of his life)
We waited too long.
Profile Image for Arjun.
618 reviews32 followers
August 7, 2023
Lot of extra stuff that didn't make it to the movie.
Profile Image for Michelle.
63 reviews3 followers
January 2, 2013
James Cameron has been my favorite director for years now and I love his way of story telling. This is the actual Titanic script with Cameron's written-in notes and scribbles. It also contains little behind the scenes tidbits that made this book "my perfect cup o' tea."
Profile Image for Alene.
Author 1 book4 followers
May 2, 2013
It's a screenplay based on the movie. The movie was great! The read was great also. Has some interesting tid-bits about the pre and post production. Some interviews. Some "on the set" photos.
Profile Image for Princess.
18 reviews1 follower
April 9, 2014
This is great for titanic fans it gives you a real insight into the movie!
Profile Image for Leslie.
1,268 reviews6 followers
October 29, 2016
pretty good. wish someone would write a real novel though.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews

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