Couple Gets Married in Epic “Titanic”-Themed Wedding, Complete with ‘Heart of the Ocean’ Necklaces and Mini 3D Lifeboats (Exclusive)
Couple Gets Married in Epic “Titanic”-Themed Wedding, Complete with ‘Heart of the Ocean’ Necklaces and Mini 3D Lifeboats (Exclusive)
Hannah SacksFri, July 24, 2026 at 4:11 PM UTC
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Deanna Director and Billy HillerCredit: Charlie Chalkin -
Deanna Director and Billy Hiller incorporated Titanic-themed elements, such as costumes, a choir, and a replica of the Heart of the Ocean necklace, into their wedding
Guests enjoyed creative details like 3D-printed lifeboats for seating and a parody cruise line brochure
Director and Hiller arrived in the Ghostbusters Ectomobile and included a humorous nod to the Titanic door scene in their ceremony and cake
Deanna Director and Billy Hiller’s hearts will go on — forever!
When the couple got married on Saturday, July 11 at Aquarelle in New York City, they knew one of their favorite movies, Titanic, had to be a part of the festivities. Director, 40, and Hiller, 41, tell PEOPLE that they were both “enamored” by the love story in the 1997 movie starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet.
“The movie affected every ‘90s kids,” Director says. “We both were enamored by the love story in the movie as well and thought it would be fun to view it through the lens of a wedding.”
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Deanna Director and Billy HillerCredit: Sherri Nienass
For Hiller, the story of the Titanic means more to him now that he works as an engineer.
“The story of Titanic is something I think about more than just my love of the blockbuster film,” explains Hiller. “As an adult, and now as an NYC crane engineer, I often reflect on the real story behind the ship. It’s the ultimate man vs. nature story.”
“A reminder of one of engineer’s most important lessons. Every structure and machine has its limits,” he continues. “The Titanic changed the course in how people think about safety. As an engineer, completing jobs safely is the number one goal. We all learn from our mistakes. The story of the Titanic is something we will never forget.”
The two decided to incorporate different aspects of the movie into their wedding day. Their invite said “Titanic-themed attire,” which lead to guests arriving dressed as everything from first class to steerage, or from James Cameron to DiCaprio’s character Jack Dawson.
Deanna Director and Billy HillerCredit: Sherri Nienass
They also included a Titanic-inspired choir called the Yacht Rock Choir, which was a volunteer group Director and Hiller had met at a Titanic-themed art show.
“They were very much on board and came dressed as sailors to the wedding,” the couple shares. “They sang three songs from the Titanic movie soundtrack acapella during the ceremony.”
Director and Hiller also made sure that the Heart of the Ocean — the necklace Winslet’s character Rose DeWitt Bukater wears during the film — made an appearance at their nuptials.
“We made these giant ‘Heart of the Ocean’ necklaces for a photo-op during the wedding so that our guests could ‘pose like Rose’ on a fainting couch next to a cardboard cut out of Leonardo DiCpario,” they share. “We posted a preview of the necklace months before the wedding and the reel currently has 16.6 million views on Instagram.”
Deanna Director and Billy Hiller’s weddingCredit: Sherri Nienass
“Deanna also wore an exact movie replica of the ‘Heart of the Ocean’ necklace with her wedding dress,” they continue, adding that Director found her necklace on Etsy.
To go along with the movie theme, Director added a Betsey Johnson purse in the shape of a boat. Inside the purse, she included a few other “Heart of the Ocean” necklaces, which she passed out to special guests during the wedding. Her dress was “iceberg-inspired.”
After the ceremony, guests could use a brochure Director and Hiller had created to find their seats. The pamphlet was made to look like a parody of a cruise line and included a map of the restaurant seating chart.
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“3D printed lifeboats (exact replicas of the lifeboats from the Titanic) guided people to their tables (we had enough for everyone, as we all have learned this lesson),” the couple shared of the way guests found which table they were sitting at. “The map was a reflection of what Billy currently does for work, designing the crane placements on construction sites in New York City.”
Deanna Director and Billy Hiller with wedding guestsCredit: Joseph Windmiller
Of course, the infamous door scene made an appearance during the wedding.
“Everyone remembers the argument that Jack could have fit on the ‘door’ with Rose,” they share. “Everyone also remembers that they are not actually floating on a door, but pop culture has deemed it a door. Even the musical Titanique references this piece of wreckage as a door.”
Director and Hiller thought it would be funny to stand on the door together to prove that there was room for two people.
“In order to do that, we disguised the wooden door as a restaurant door hidden in plain sight,” they explain. “The fake door stood at the bottom of the stairs, and before Deanna came down those stairs, Billy ripped the fake door off the wall in front of all our guests to reveal a fake wooden door on the back, which Billy brought to the stage. No one saw it coming.”
Deanna Director and Billy Hiller’s wedding cakeCredit: Sherri Nienass
The two even incorporated the door scene into their wedding cake. They opted for a cake made by a Chef de Partie at the Rainbow Room named Daija Randall.
“We wanted the cake to reflect what happened with the door during the ceremony, so we had a bride and groom on top of a dollhouse door, which was on a large flat sheet cake,” they share. “The icing was ocean-blue and looked like water rippling around the figures that were placed in the center of the cake.”
Although the two are big Titanic fans, Hiller’s all-time favorite movie is Ghostbusters. In order to pay homage to that film, the couple arrived to their wedding in style in the Ghostbusters Ectomobile. They even stopped at the Ghostbusters Firehouse in Manhattan ahead of their wedding for a photoshoot.
Hiller and Director met on Hinge 2½ years ago. They got engaged on April 13, 2025 on the anniversary of the “last good day” aboard the Titanic.
“We got engaged in the middle of a Titanic bit we filmed,” they share. “We pretended the NYC ferry we were on was about to hit some iceberg (lettuce). Deanna’s back was turned to Billy and he surprised her when she turned around.”
Deanna Director and Billy HillerCredit: Sherri Nienass
As they look back on their special day, which took about six months to plan, the couple says seeing everyone having a good time and getting into the spirit of Titanic made it all worth it.
“Seeing everyone dressed up in costume and getting into the theme,” the couple says of their favorite part of their wedding. “The door was probably our favorite moment. It got a huge laugh and applause break.”
Director and Hiller say their guests loved all the creative ingenuity that went into making their dream wedding.
“Everyone loved the theme and all the elements we added to the event,” they say. “We created a giant Titanic funnel sculpture to place on top of the restaurant’s awning that people loved taking photos with.”
“This prop took months to create in our small one-bedroom apartment in Brooklyn. We provided guests with ample opportunities for great photos, which we have loved seeing shared online,” the couple further noted.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
