Kate Winslet was surprised to reunite with one of her most unknown co-stars from the cast of “Titanic” almost three decades after the release of the cult film, during the recording of the soundtrack for her new film “ Lee”.
An unexpected encounter. Guest of the last episode of “The Graham Norton Show”, Kate Winslet revealed that she had found by surprise the actor and musician Jonathan Evans-Jones, who played the violinist Wallace Hartley in “Titanic”, during the filming of biopic “Lee,” in which she plays model-turned-war photographer Elizabeth “Lee” Miller.
“While we were there, I was looking through the glass at the musicians on stage – a huge orchestra of 120 musicians – and I noticed a violinist, thinking: ‘I know that face,’” the actress told the other guests, Dwayne Johnson, Lucy Liu, Jennifer Lopez, Jharrel Jerome, Celeste and host Graham Norton. She said several other musicians also recognized him, whispering among themselves: “It’s him.”
Kate Winslet explained that she tried for a long time to remember where she had deja vu, even going so far as to wonder if she had a family connection with him, before finally deciding to speak to him at the end of the day. “So I walked in and he said, ‘Kate, it’s me.’ You know, when the Titanic sinks and the violinist gets up and says, ‘Come on, guys,’ and he starts playing. It was this guy! I said to myself: ‘It’s you!’” confided the star.
“Titanic”, the highest-grossing film in history until 2009
Facing cheers from the audience, Kate Winslet added: “It was incredible!” The production then displayed a photo of the legendary scene where the group plays while the ship sinks, the actress confirming her words by pointing to Evans-Jones on the screen. “Yes, he’s there, on the right. It was him. It was simply wonderful. We had so many moments like that in the film, where people that I’ve worked with before or that I’ve known for a long time, that I grew up with in the industry, introduced themselves to me and it was incredible,” she concluded.
Professional musician and actor, Jonathan Evans-Jones has participated in numerous projects, including “The Incredible Hulk” (2008), “Hunger Games: Part 2” (2015), “The Batman” (2022) and “ Kung Fu Panda 4” (2024), for which he worked as a violinist.
“Titanic”, where Kate Winslet who played the rich debutante Rose Bukater opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in the skin of the artist Jack Dawson, tells their love story during the ship’s maiden voyage in 1912. This role earned the actress an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress, in addition to winning Best Picture and Best Director for James Cameron.
Since its release in December 1997, the drama film has generated $2.264 billion at the worldwide box office, becoming the highest-grossing film in history until 2009, when “Avatar,” another James Cameron film, took first place.
