15 Behind-the-Scenes Titanic Photos That Will Change How You See the Movie

Upon its release on December 19, 1997, the film achieved critical and commercial success. Nominated for fourteen Academy Awards, it won eleven, including the awards for Best Picture and Best Director, tying Ben Hur (1959) for most Oscars won by a single film. With an initial worldwide gross of over $1.84 billion, it was the first film to reach the billion-dollar mark. It remained the highest-grossing film of all time for twelve years, until Cameron’s 2009 film Avatar surpassed its gross in 2010.

The film is often rated among the greatest movies ever made. A 3D version of the film, released on April 4, 2012 (often billed as Titanic 3D), to commemorate the centenary of the sinking of the ship, earned it an additional $343 million worldwide, which pushed Titanic‘s worldwide total to $2.18 billion. It became the second film to pass the two-billion mark (the first being Avatar).

Here is a gallery of 15 amazing behind-the-scenes photos from the making of Titanic.