In 2013, pop-science show MythBusters attempted to nix it once and for all, concluding that, yes, Rose could have scooched over a bit, and Jack would have lived dishily ever after. But only if Rose had removed her lifejacket and given it to Jack to tie it beneath the portion of door he would then be occupying.

Did Jack have to die to save Rose?

Based on how Titanic's screenplay is structured, Jack had to die not just to save Rose, but for the sake of narrative harmony. Cameron first shows his hand, so to speak, not long after Jack wins a hand at poker (allowing the American character and his Italian friend to board the Titanic).

Could Jack and Rose both have survived?

Turns out, both could have fit—but as MythBusters noted, the physics of buoyancy pushed Jack to his fate. ... To keep afloat and out of the water just enough to survive, Jack and Rose would have had to tie a life jacket underneath the door to make it more buoyant.