James Cameron is sailing his 1997 masterpiece "Titanic" back into movie theaters on April 6, 2012, Paramount Pictures, Twentieth Century Fox and Cameron's Lightstorm Entertainment announced Thursday morning.
The worldwide re-release date is four days short of the 100th anniversary of the Titanic's maiden voyage.
Cameron and his producing partner, Jon Landau, are overseeing the film's conversion to 3D.
Also read: 'Titanic' Getting 3D Re-Release
Even in 2D, the movie was spectacular, winning 11 Academy Awards: best picture, best director, best cinematography, best art direction, best costume design, best sound, best film editing, best sound effects editing, best visual effects, best original song and best original dramatic score.
And it was an astonishing commercial success, grossing $1.84 billion worldwide. It was the highest-grossing movie ever -- until it was eclipsed by Cameron and Landau's 2009 3D megahit "Avatar," which grossed $2.79 billion. It's now the second highest-grossing movie of all time.
In the past, Cameron has expressed reservations about converting movies from 2D to 3D. Clearly, he has changed his mind -- at least about converting "Titanic."
In a written statement, Cameron said, "There's a whole generation that's never seen ‘Titanic’ as it was meant to be seen, on the big screen. And this will be 'Titanic' as you've never seen it before, digitally re-mastered at 4K and painstakingly converted to 3D. With the emotional power intact and the images more powerful than ever, this will be an epic experience for fans and newcomers alike."
