Could one of the most tragic deaths in James Cameron's Titanic have been avoided? Most people who watched the three-hour-long film undoubtedly cried buckets of tears when Jack Dawson tragically died of hypothermia while stranded at sea after the Titanic sank. However, many fans believe there was definitely room for him on the doorframe alongside Rose, which may have ultimately prevented his death.
Several celebrities have even commented on this controversial film theory. Some people, like Titanic director James Cameron and star Leonardo DiCaprio, are tired of hearing about it. In an interview with Vanity Fair, Cameron stated, "I think it's all kind of silly, really, that we're having this discussion 20 years later. But it does show that the film was effective in making Jack so endearing to the audience that it hurts them to see him die. Had he lived, the end of the film would have been meaningless."
DiCaprio's Once Upon A Time in Hollywood co-stars were even heartbroken about his character's death and agreed he could have fit on the door. "That is the biggest controversy I think, in modern cinema," Margot Robbie rightfully declared, with Brad Pitt teasing, "Could you have squeezed there? You could’ve, couldn’t you?" DiCaprio replied, "No comment," in an interview with MTV News. DiCaprio had the same response when Robbie questioned if he asked the production crew about making the doorframe smaller.
The survival theory was reignited in 2012 after the 3-D rerelease of Titanic to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the ship's sinking. Finally, the theory was put to the test on an episode of Discovery Channel's MythBusters. Hosts Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman evaluated different scenarios to determine the answer to this long-standing debate on whether Jack could have survived.
The MythBusters crew discovered the method Jack and Rose could have tried to ensure his survival. Rose would have needed to tie her life jacket underneath the doorframe to assist with its buoyancy, so their combined weight wouldn't have sunk the doorframe further down into the ocean. They also tested the human ability to withstand freezing temperatures before hypothermia sets in and timed it from the moment they entered the water until Rose's rescue.
While Jack's physical ability to survive has remained a controversial film debate, Titanic fans have forgotten how mentally determined Jack was to live. Viewers saw this when Jack persuaded Rose to stay on the boat as long as possible to avoid hypothermia from the frigid waters beneath them. Acclaimed astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson even commented on the long-lasting theory. "Whether or not he could’ve been successful, I would’ve tried more than once. You try once. ‘Oh, this is not gonna work. I will just freeze to death in the water.’ No, excuse me. No! The survival instinct is way stronger than that in everybody, especially in that character. He’s a survivor..." commented deGrasse Tyson to the HuffPost.
In short, Titanic's Jack Dawson has one of the most avoidable deaths in film history. While he convinced Rose to never give up, he himself gave up and could have tried harder to fit on the doorframe, ensuring the couple's future. That said, at least Rose didn't end up with the pompous Caledon Hockley, played by Billy Zane. Rose lived a long and full life despite Jack's death and her literally letting go of him as he sank to the bottom of the ocean.