Another Ruined Reputation
James made such a huge character flaw in the film that he went out of his way to apologize later on. In the movie, Officer William Murdoch is depicted as a jerk who even shoots passengers attempting to save themselves. He then commits suicide to avoid going down with the boat.
All of this was completely false. Officer Murdoch did indeed fire shots but into the air. He was trying to restore calm, or so the story goes. However, there was never evidence that the officer shot anyone or even committed suicide. James had to publicly apologize to Officer Murdoch’s family for depicting him in a negative light.