Kate Winslet may have a BAFTA, Golden Globe, Emmy and Oscar under her belt – but she’s now received a new honour, breaking the free diving record on set of her new film The Way Of Water.
The 46-year-old actress famously ended up with hypothermia while filming 1997’s Titanic after spending months in the water.
She even vowed to never work with director James Cameron again - but has since changed her mind.
Braving the water once more, Winslet has teamed up with Cameron for the Avatar sequel, in which she plays Ronal, one of a race of underwater beings closely related to the Na’vi.
The Mare of Easttown star along with her fellow cast, including Sam Worthington and Zoe Saldana, underwent strenuous dive training to prepare for the picture, which hits cinemas on December 16, 2022.
The film’s producer Jon Landau revealed that the British star left production astounded when she managed to nearly hold her breath underwater for seven minutes.
Speaking to the Daily Mail, Landau said: “Kate broke a free-diving record among the cast. It was six minutes 50-something — but for Kate we agreed to call it seven.
“She was phenomenal.”
Bailey Bass, who plays Winslet’s daughter Tsireya in the film, added: “Kate holds the record — she set it during training. I managed six minutes and 30 seconds.”
Winslet’s feat comes days after Disney surprised fans at its D23 Expo with several exclusive looks at snippets from Cameron’s highly anticipated Avatar sequel.
Audience members in the main exhibition hall in Anaheim, California, were handed 3D glasses to watch the underwater scenes on two enormous screens.
The clips featured appearances from returning stars Worthington and Sigourney Weaver as their big, blue, CGI-selves.
The Way Of Water follows the first Avatar film which, after it was released in 2009, became the highest-grossing film of all time and won three Oscars.
As well as the return of Worthington, Weaver, and Saldana, Avatar: The Way Of Water sees Winslet, Michelle Yeoh, Vin Diesel and Edie Falco join the cast.
