I'll Never Let Go: James Cameron Is Being Sued By The Real Jack Dawson From 'Titanic'

Near, far, wherever, you are, I'm sure you will remember #JamesCameron's #Titanic. A buxom #KateWinslet standing tall at the front of the doomed ship, #LeonardoDiCaprio's fresh-faced whimsy, and pausing the VCR just at the right moment to get a shot of Kate's "first class accommodation." There is little wonder that Titanic is still up there with highest-grossing films of all time and boasts being one of the most ambitious Hollywood projects ever. However, there is an iceberg of complications dead ahead that threaten to sink the film's untarnished legacy.

It is time for another weekly edition of "How Can I Sue?" and we have managed to top the Guardians of the Galaxy texting case with another doozy. Although the events depicted in 1997's film were as close to real life as you can get without having been there yourself, the majority of the characters came from fictional origins. Out of respect for the dead, Cameron crafted his own fictional leads, meaning that there was no "real" Rose DeWitt Bukater or Jack Dawson — or was there?

That Sinking Feeling

According to TMZ, a man claiming to be the real Jack Dawson has launched a lawsuit against Cameron for the "Titanic" sum of $300 million. Apparently, Florida resident Stephen Cummings is a local yachting legend who Cameron had met prior to his work on Titanic. Cummings is also seeking a further 1% of all royalties amidst accusations that Cameron turned his personality into the fictional Dawson. There is a pretty simple test to prove this without taking it to the courts, can Cummings do an Irish jig?

Personally, I see several problems with the situation: Cummings is known for yachting, which a slightly smaller vessel than the sunken liner, and secondly, the illustrious seafaring career of Cummings was around the time of 1989, some 77 after Titanic has laid herself on the seabed. However, a defiant Cummings is going full steam ahead with his case, and to make matters worse, has even more to say.

Cummings adds that the tale of Jack and Rose is actually from stories he used to tell his friends after a hard day at sea. The duo were apparently relatives of his and travelled on the maiden voyage, where, yes, just like Cameron's film, only the woman survived. As there were 1,517 people who perished on that freezing night, I imagine Cummings isn't the only one who could manufacture such a story from the history books.

This isn't the first (or the last) time that claims have been brought against a popular money-spinning series, with some cheeky so-and-so claiming Hollywood has pinched their ideas. Harry Potter, Battlestar Galactica, and even Cameron's Avatar have all come under the copyright firing line before. However, the Titanic one really takes the waterbiscuit — $300 million and 1% of royalties isn't exactly small change, even to the likes of Cameron. With more holes in it than Titanic itself, we can see this one sinking quicker than Leo to the bottom of the ocean.

(Source: TMZ)