The Rice family (left), the unnamed Third class Irish family (right)
Although it was never been directly confirmed, the unnamed Irish third-class family in James Cameron's film Titanic (1997) may have been inspired by Margaret Rice and her five sons. Considering the many similarities between the two families.
The equations include:
- The family came from Ireland, just like the Rice family.
- The family was not accompanied by the father, and it was not explained what the reason for his absence was. It could be that the mother is widowed or is on her way to join her husband in America. Margaret Rice was widowed, her husband died in an accident.
- Equal age between the mother and Margaret Rice. The mother (portrayed by Jenette Goldstein), was 36 at the time of filming the Titanic. Margaret Rice was 39 when she boarded the Titanic.
- The Irish children in the film age range are almost the same as Margaret Rice's children. While in the film only 2 children appear, Margaret Rice has 5 sons in real life.
- It seems that the mother could not find the lifeboat, so she took her two children to lulling them in their cabin. Quite similar to Margaret Rice, she was last seen on deck comforting her five sons.
- The family did not survive the sinking. Just like the Rice family, obviously.
Role in the film[]
| “ |
And so they lived happily together for 300 years, in the land of Tír na nÓg, the land of eternal youth and beauty. |
” |
"To the left, darling"
The family is first seen looking for their stateroom upon boarding the ship, which they pass with Jack Dawson and Fabrizio de Rossi.
"What do we doing, mommy?"
| “ |
We're just waiting, dear. When they finish putting the First Class people in the boats, they'll be startin' with us, and we'll want to be all ready, won't we? |
” |
—Irish Mother to her two children | ||
When the Titanic sank, they were waiting for the third class main gate which was being locked, the little son asked her mother what do we were doing, she replied that after the crew finish to loaded the first class passengers into the lifeboats, it was their turn and told her children to be ready.
The Irish Mother and her two children in their cabin
It seems that the three of them managed to get onto the boat deck, but all the boats had been launched. Desperate, the mother brought her children back to their stateroom and put them to sleep while she telling the fairy tale "Tale of Tír Na Nóg". The three of them died in their stateroom.
Behind the scenes[]
- Main article: Irish Mother (1997 Titanic Film)
- Main article: Irish Little Girl
- Main article: Irish Little Boy
| “ |
I auditioned after Jim [Cameron] called me up and said, "Why don’t you read this script, see if there are any roles you like? The granddaughter’s been taken already!" And I looked through, and I said, "Oh, I want that role." When I tell people I was the Irish Mother, they go, "Oh my god." I didn’t even have a name. That mother, her focus was making sure her children were calm and happy — knowing they were going to die. I mean, my god, I’m getting chills right now. Those scenes are fantastic. |
” |
—Jenette Goldstein | ||
The mother was portrayed by actress Jenette Goldstein, while the son was portrayed by Reece P. Thompson III, and the little girl was portrayed by Laramie Landis.
| “ |
They wanted me to say it in an Irish accent, and as a 5-year-old I had no idea what that meant. So I had my handler or whatever — my mom was on set, but my mom’s not proficient in accents either — trying to explain to me how to say it, and I remember just trying to say it over and over and over again. That was the more frustrating part. Everyone was like, "If you can, just get this accent." When I’ve gone back and seen it, it doesn’t really sound super Irish to me, but it’s such a small line and I had such a soft voice that it didn’t really [matter]. |
” |
—Reece P. Thompson III | ||
Trivia[]
- None of them was named.
- Despite being a recurring character, both of them never met or interacted with Rose DeWitt Bukater, preventing them from appearing in the Rose's Dream scene.
- Jenette Goldstein previously worked with director James Cameron in Aliens (1986).
- The family in the movie are shown boarding the Titanic in Southampton, instead of Queenstown like the Rice family in real life.