Despite the chance, the Homeland star turned it down, and she’s got a pretty solid reason. She had just wrapped up filming Romeo + Juliet with Leonardo DiCaprio and wasn’t feeling another epic romance. Primarily since both movies were shot in Mexico.
Danes spilled the tea on Armchair Expert with Dax Shepard, saying, “I think I did [get the offer]. I’m not entirely clear on that. There was strong interest.” She added that after Romeo + Juliet, she simply didn’t have it in her to dive into Titanic—even with DiCaprio on board.
Speaking of Leo, the actress remembers him struggling with whether to take the part. One day, she saw him circling his manager’s office in a red convertible, clearly deep in thought. “He just looked up at me and said, ‘I’m doing it! I’m doing it!’… But he was like, ‘F*** it, I gotta do this thing.’”
Danes? She totally understood. “I think I really wasn’t ready for it,” she admitted, saying she needed a break from the big romantic epics. Meanwhile, Leo went on to become the Jack Dawson and launched into another stratosphere of fame.
No Regrets: Claire Danes Turned Down Titanic for All the Right Reasons
Claire Danes has zero regrets about passing Titanic. From the get go, the actress was certain it wasn’t for her.
“I was really clear about it. I wasn’t conflicted,” Danes revealed on the Armchair Expert podcast with Dax Shepard. Studio execs were eager to recreate the magic from Romeo + Juliet, but Danes didn’t want the overwhelming fame that Titanic promised. “It was going to propel me to something I knew I didn’t have the resources to cope with. I knew I had to do a lot of foundation building.”
The actress wasn’t just concerned about fame; she was also exhausted from filming in Mexico City for Romeo + Juliet. And with Titanic also set to film in Mexico, Danes was tapped out. “I just didn’t have it in me,” she alluded. Even DiCaprio wasn’t so sure.
Despite the global success of Titanic, Danes has “zero regrets.” Kate Winslet ultimately took on the role and won the Best Actress Oscar in 1998, while Danes stayed true to her instincts. And honestly? She wouldn’t have it any other way.
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