Ethan Hawke Was Glad He Didn’t Star in ‘Titanic’ After Seeing What Happened to Leonardo DiCaprio
As some may know, actor Ethan Hawke was one of many actors who auditioned for Titanic. But the Training Day star fell short, and Leonardo DiCaprio ended up with the role. In hindsight, however, Hawke was more than relieved that DiCaprio ended up in the film instead of him.
Ethan Hawke doesn’t do well picking commercial films
Titanic might have been the biggest movie in Hawke’s career if it performed the same way it did when DiCaprio starred in it. For years, the movie even reigned supreme as the highest-grossing film of all time. But if there was one thing Hawke has learned about himself, it was that he doesn’t do too well starring in commercial films.
“This is the biggest struggle of my life, to be honest,” Hawke once told The Guardian. “I never know to what extent I have to feed the snake, you know. The times in my life I’ve tried to sell out have failed miserably.”
Hawke revealed when he knew he needed to stop chasing films just because of their commercial potential.
“I did this Angelina Jolie horror film thinking it would be a big hit and it was terrible,” he continued. “When I’ve followed my heart it goes well. One of the most successful movies I did was Before Sunset: we made that film for the sole reason that we wanted to make that film. The trick is to shoot from your heart, and then when the kind of work that you like is back in fashion again, you’ll seem like you’ve stood your ground.”
Ethan Hawke once auditioned for ‘Titanic’
Hawke once tried to feature in another commercial movie in James Cameron’s Titanic. Like many other hopefuls, he auditioned for the role that famously went to DiCaprio. Although he might have been disappointed with the outcome, later on he couldn’t help but feel grateful he missed the boat in Cameron’s epic.
The revelation came when Hawke and DiCaprio were at a bar. There, Hawke saw the results of DiCaprio’s Titanic fame.
“I sat there watching him and it was like watching a Beatle. The closest thing I’ve ever come to that frenzy. All the girls wanted to f*** him and all the guys wanted to fight him. I went to myself: ‘Wow man, I’m glad I didn’t get that part,’” Hawke told Telegraph.
But Hawke also shared he might have felt a touch of jealousy.
“But you know, secretly, I couldn’t help thinking that if I had got it maybe I could have lived exactly the life I wanted to. That I would never have had to worry about my career. Damn DiCaprio,” he joked. “Damn that kid!”
Ethan Hawke admired how Leonardo DiCaprio handled success after ‘Titanic’
With how young Leonardo DiCaprio was, it would’ve been easy for the actor to end up like other unfortunate young adult stars. But DiCaprio continued to grow as an actor by making good career choices. It was a development the Moon Knight star shared he was impressed by during a Reddit AMA. On the forum, Hawke told fans why he wanted to work with DiCaprio sometime in the future.
“Because I know he’s crazy famous and everyone wants to work with him, but I admire tremendously the way he has handled his celebrity,” he wrote. “After the success of Titanic, it would have been very easy for him to wind up another drug-addled casualty on the Hollywood Strip; but instead, he’s dedicated himself to making great films, and doesn’t he need an older brother? Or a bad guy? Isn’t there a role for me somewhere?”
