Kate Winslet has said fame is no longer a “burden” despite admitting being in the public eye when she made her debut in Titanic was “horrible”.
The British actress, 48, was a little-known actor before she was cast in the life-changing part of Rose, aged 22, in the James Cameron epic.
In the film, Rose falls in love with Jack, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, while aboard the ill-fated trip in the 1998 epic - which remains one of the most successful films of all time.
Speaking to PORTER magazine, Oscar winner Winslet said of fame: “It’s not a burden, any of it. [Titanic] continues to bring people huge amounts of joy. The only time I am like, ‘Oh god, hide’, is if we are on a boat somewhere.”
The five-time Golden Globe winner said it was a different story, however, back in the late nineties.
“I felt like I had to look a certain way, or be a certain thing, and because media intrusion was so significant at that time, my life was quite unpleasant,” she said.
“Journalists would always say, ‘After Titanic, you could have done anything and yet you chose to do these small things’… and I was like, ‘Yeah, you bet your life I did! Because, guess what, being famous was horrible’.”
The star has two children - Mia, 23, and Joey, 20 - with her ex-husbands Jim Threapleton and Sam Mendes respectively.
Both children are budding actors, with Winslet starring alongside her daughter in 2021 television drama I Am Ruth. The film explores a desperate mother struggling to connect with her social media addicted teenage daughter.
On acting with her daughter, Winslet said: “Luckily, they’re good [her children]. It felt normal. These are kids who have been testing [me] on [my] lines pretty much since they could read. They’ve seen me terrified beforehand. They’ve gone through it with me.”
I Am Ruth was received well by critics and viewers alike, with Winslet crediting its success down to the show’s common themes that parents of teenagers could relate to.
“The thing about going through something traumatic with a teenager is that it is completely automatic for any parent to feel like it is your fault," she said.
"So then this strange shame comes into play – and when the shame comes in, you shut down and you don’t discuss it or share it. I wanted to tell a story that created a platform for people to just have a conversation. And that part of it has been overwhelming.”
This year, fans will see Winslet feature in Lee - a film based on the life and work of World War II photojournalist Lee Miller.
She said playing Miller had inspired her in numerous ways.
"What I took from her is that absolute freedom she has from her body and her delight in her own physical self,” she said.
“I think that’s very unusual of historical female figures that we know of – and it’s very unusual of women today.”
Speaking about Miller’s work, Winslet said: “There was just no giving up. What [Miller] stands for in representing truth and justice… [someone] who was powerful emotionally and charismatic and sexy and brilliantly skilled at her job and had a way of connecting with people – I am inspired by that.”
