James Cameron denies working on Titanic submersible disaster movie

Los Angeles:Filmmaker James Cameron blasted "offensive rumours" that he is in talks to helm a feature film about the recent Titan submersible tragedy that killed five people on their voyage to the Titanic wreck site.

Owned by OceanGate Expeditions, Titan had been chronicling the Titanic's decay and the underwater ecosystem around it via yearly voyages since 2021. The submersible imploded near the wreckage of the doomed vessel, killing all five people on board on June 18.

Cameron, who directed the Oscar-winning 1997 disaster drama "Titanic" based on the sinking of the titular ship, took to Twitter on Saturday to publicly condemn rumours.

"I don't respond to offensive rumors in the media usually, but I need to now, I'm NOT in talks about an OceanGate film, nor will I ever be," the filmmaker and sea explorer wrote.

I don’t respond to offensive rumors in the media usually, but I need to now. I’m NOT in talks about an OceanGate film, nor will I ever be.

— James Cameron (@JimCameron) July 15, 2023

Recently, Cameron, 68, told an American news outlet that he was "struck by the similarity" of the ill-fated submersible and the Titanic itself.

Last month, the US Coast Guard said debris found during the search for Titan "is consistent with a catastrophic implosion of the vessel."

OceanGate Expeditions CEO Stockton Rush, Shahzada Dawood and his son Suleman Dawood, Hamish Harding, and Paul-Henri Nargeolet were killed in the implosion.