The wardrobe malfunction that almost ruined James Cameron’s big night at the Oscars
The Oscars ceremony is guaranteed to be a night to remember, if not for the viewers then certainly for those attending. Especially those attending with numerous huge nominations. The night James Cameron won ‘Best Director’ for a little movie called Titanic was sure to be a big one.
And for Cameron especially, it was. Titanic was nominated for 14 Oscars and went on to win 11, tying with the record Ben-Hur had held for 38 years. The director also caused many moments he might not want to be so memorable. Upon receiving his award for ‘Best Director’, Cameron signed off his acceptance speech by proclaiming, “I’M KING OF THE WORLD!”
Though he meant it as a nod to the film and as a way to describe an indescribable moment, many took it as self-referential hubris, including Warren Beatty, who had presented him with the award. Speaking to The Holywood Reporter, he describes walking backstage to the horrified look on Beatty’s face, “He was just looking at me like, ‘You poor boob, what the fuck did you just do?’”.
Yet, despite already pissing people off with his overly confident acceptance speech, Cameron decided to keep pushing it without really realising he was doing so. At the very end of the evening, when telecasters are trying to wrap things up before the East Coast news starts charging them for their time, Cameron decides to turn his acceptance for ‘Best Picture’ into a 15-second silence for the victims of the Titanic disaster. Pushing the runtime to three hours 49 minutes, it became the longest show to date.
However, when reminiscing about the evening, Cameron doesn’t remember these cheeky moments or even a near fight with Harvey Weinstein. He remembers not one but two wardrobe malfunctions first. The strap on his then-wife Linda Hamitlon’s strap broke, and his tux, which came together rather late, was three inches too big. A tailor was meant to meet them at the Four Seasons but didn’t show. He explains, “So with one hand, I’m holding up my pants, and with the other, I’m holding up Linda’s dress. That was our entire fricking evening.”
It’s not the ideal way to spend what is one of the defining moments of your career. Especially if your excitement at winning multiple Academy Awards is hampered by the anxiety of possibly flashing someone in the process. Already worried about the possibility of having to make multiple speeches, he recounts his trepidation after the first win, “When they called my name for the first time, which was for editing, I’m like, ‘Oh, shit. I’ve got to get up in front of whatever, a billion people, and I’m holding my pants up’. Try to remember your speech in the middle of that!”
However, Cameron and Hamilton managed the whole night without an unfortunate wardrobe incident, even if it was constantly on their minds. And even if it had, it still might not have been one of the most memorable events of the evening. Cameron was right in one way when he announced himself King of the World. He will always be king of one of the most hubristic acceptance speeches. Well, maybe behind Matthew McConaughey.
