Someone is claiming James Cameron stole his family’s life story for the plot of “Titanic”

It’s been 20 years since it hit our cinema screens, and now, after all this time, a man is suing Titanic director James Cameron, claiming that he stole his family’s life story for the plot of the beloved movie.

Stephen Cummings from Florida has announced that he’s suing the Hollywood director for $300 million, TMZ has reported. Ouch. According to documents obtained by the gossip site, Cummings claims that it’s one specific part of the plot that Cameron has allegedly lifted out of reality: the love story between Jack and Rose.

Of course, while Titanic is certainly one heck of a disaster movie (we mean, the ship does sink and tragedy does strike), at its core is a sweet and enduring love story that captured the hearts of the world and led to the movie becoming the second biggest box office hit of all time (it was the biggest when it came out, but was later beaten by James Cameron’s own movie, Avatar).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YGfrGKK9Mo?feature=oembed

According to the court documents, Cummings, an ex-Florida yacht master, suggests that the director lifted the story after he heard about two of his relatives who were on board the Titanic during its fated (and only) journey: a woman (aka Rose) who survived the tragic sinking of the ship and her husband (Jack) who didn’t make it.

On its maiden voyage from the U.K. to the U.S., the Titanic struck an iceberg. The ship, which was thought to be unsinkable, sadly proved itself othewise. Of the 2,208 people aboard the ship, 1,500 died, so it’s entirely likely that the situation that Cummings claims Cameron stole happened to many people.

Meanwhile, James Cameron recently opened up about the difficulties he encountered trying to get the movie made and released. Writing for The Hollywood Reporter, the director detailed how the release was pushed back and the press began to lose faith in the project.

Luckily, things all worked out, and the movie went on to win 11 Academy Awards and make $2.1 billion. The legal case is, however, ongoing.

Filed Under