Incredible behind-the-scenes photos from the filming of Titanic have emerged 27 years later.
The never-before-seen candid photos were taken by an unknown actor from James Cameron’s blockbuster while filming in Mexico in 1996.
Amateur images show a fresh-faced Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet relaxing during a break with their famous characters Jack and Rose.
Winslet, just 21 at the time, wears the white life jacket her character donned before plunging into the icy Atlantic at the end of the film.
The film, which was released to great success in late 1997, told the story of the sinking of the Titanic in April 1912.
The newly built passenger liner set sail from Southampton to New York but sank after hitting an iceberg, killing more than 1,500 people.
Incredible behind-the-scenes photos from the filming of Titanic have emerged 27 years later. The amateur images show a fresh-faced Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet (above) relaxing during a break with their famous characters Jack and Rose.DiCaprio is dressed as his character Jack Dawson, a poor young artist who wins a third-class ticket on the Titanic to the United States in a poker game.
Another photo shows the then 22-year-old DiCaprio talking to Cameron, wearing modern wraparound sunglasses that contrast with his Edwardian-era outfit.
Cameron also directs DiCaprio and co-star Danny Nucci, who plays his character’s friend Fabrizio, in a scene where the pair run down the ramp to board the doomed liner.
Billy Zane, who plays villain Cal Hockley, relaxes in a vintage car and talks with Winslet.
Kathy Bates, who plays the incredible Molly Brown, poses for the camera with the female actress.
The photographs were taken in the Mexican border city of Rosarito, where a full-scale version of the Titanic was built for filming.
The landing scenes at the beginning of the film were filmed there.
Several images show Winslet’s character immaculately dressed in a white suit and large hat, with the camera positioned just a few feet away from her.
A fresh-faced DiCaprio can be seen on the set of Titanic in Rosarito, Mexico during filming.DiCaprio walks onto the set of Titanic with co-star Danny Nucci, who plays his character’s friend Fabrizio.Old and new: DiCaprio wears modern sunglasses and is dressed in his character’s Edwardian era clothing.Danny Nucci on the deck in front of a giant reproduction of the Titanic.
There are also photographs showing that the stern of the liner, not visible to the cameras, is supported by scaffolding.
Other images show some of the extras sleeping on set during breaks, while others donning costumes in the huge dressing room.
There are a total of 44 photographs in the archive.
They were acquired by a British collector a few years ago and are now being offered for sale at Henry Aldridge and Son Devizes, Wiltshire.
They have a pre-sale estimate of £1,500.
Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said: “These are stunning photographs. They provide a unique look behind the scenes of the production of the highest-grossing film of the 20th century.
Frances Fisher is portrayed as Ruth DeWitt Buketer, Rose’s mother.Winslet is pictured as Rose going after Billy Zane’s character Cal Hockley.Winslet as Rose in a scene from the beginning of the film showing passengers aboard the Titanic.The photographs were taken in the Mexican border city of Rosarito, where a full-scale version of the Titanic was built for filming.They were acquired several years ago by a British collector and are now offered for sale at Henry Aldridge and Son Devizes, Wiltshire.
“What’s great about these photos is that they were clearly taken by a crew member with their own camera. These are not professional PR shots, these are candid, amateur photographs.
“It looks like the actors took every opportunity to take some candid shots of some of the film’s stars.
“A very young Leonardo DiCaprio appears in many films. He had already starred in Romeo and Juliet, but it was Titanic that propelled him forward and made him a star of the first magnitude.
“It’s amazing how much a photograph of a model of the Titanic with scaffolding beneath it resembles the real liner at Belfast Dockyard in 1911.”
Photos will go on sale November 11th.
The Titanic is seen leaving Southampton on its doomed maiden voyage. It sank in April 1912 after colliding with an iceberg.
DISASTER IN THE ATLANTIC: HOW MORE THAN 1,500 PEOPLE LOST LIVES IN THE SINKING OF THE TITANIC
The RMS Titanic sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on April 15, 1912, after striking an iceberg during its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York.
More than 1,500 people died when the ship, carrying 2,224 passengers and crew, sank under the command of Captain Edward Smith.
On board were some of the world’s richest people, including real estate magnate John Jacob Astor IV, great-grandson of John Jacob Astor, founder of the Waldorf Astoria Hotel.
Built by Belfast shipbuilders Harland and Wolf between 1909 and 1912, RMS Titanic was the largest ship of its time.
Millionaire Benjamin Guggenheim, heir to his family’s mining business, also died along with Isidor Strauss, the German co-owner of Macy’s department store.
The ship was the largest afloat at the time and was designed to be “unsinkable”.
On board there was a gym, libraries, a swimming pool, several restaurants and luxurious first class cabins.
There were not enough lifeboats on board for all passengers due to outdated maritime safety regulations.
Leaving Southampton on April 10, 1912, Titanic called at Cherbourg in France and Queenstown in Ireland before sailing to New York.
On 14 April 1912, four days after the passage, she struck an iceberg at 23:40 local time.
James Moody was on night duty when the collision occurred and answered the watchman’s call, asking him: “What do you see?” The man replied, “The iceberg is straight ahead.”
By 2:20 a.m., with hundreds of people still on board, the ship sank, taking many with it, including Moody.
Despite repeated distress calls and flares fired from the decks, the first rescue ship, RMS Carpathia, arrived almost two hours later, pulling more than 700 people from the water.
It was not until 1985 that the wreck of the ship was discovered on the ocean floor, divided into two parts.
