George Paul DiCaprio (born October 2, 1943) is an American writer, editor, publisher, distributor, and former performance artist , known for his work in the realm of underground comix . DiCaprio has collaborated with Timothy Leary and Laurie Anderson . He is the father of actor Leonardo DiCaprio .
117-497: Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio ( / d i ˈ k æ p r i oʊ , d ɪ -/ ; Italian: [diˈkaːprjo] ; born November 11, 1974) is an American actor and film producer. Known for his work in biographical and period films, he is the recipient of numerous accolades , including an Academy Award , a British Academy Film Award , and three Golden Globe Awards . As of 2019, his films have grossed over $ 7.2 billion worldwide, and he has been placed eight times in annual rankings of
234-739: A Golden Globe Award for Best Actor . DiCaprio stated in 2000: "I have no connection with me during that whole Titanic phenomenon and what my face became around the world [...] I'll never reach that state of popularity again, and I don't expect to [...] It's not something I'm going to try to achieve either." In his 2015 Rolling Stone article, Ebiri called the role DiCaprio's best, writing that he and Winslet "infuse their earnest back-and-forth with so much genuine emotion that it's hard not to get swept up in their doomed love affair." A writer for Vanity Fair in 2008 similarly labeled them "Hollywood's most iconic screen couple" since Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman . Essaying her first viewing of
351-603: A " muzhik " or "real man". In 2013, he organized a benefit fine art auction, "11th Hour", which raised nearly $ 38.8 million for his foundation. In September 2014, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon designated DiCaprio as a United Nations Messenger of Peace with a focus on climate change. Later that month, he made an opening statement to members of the UN Climate Summit ; his speech reached an estimated one billion people worldwide. In 2015, he announced his intention to divest from fossil fuels . He again spoke at
468-621: A "relevant art form, like a painting or sculpture. A hundred years from now, people will still be watching that movie." He often plays roles based on real-life people and stories told in specific periods. According to Caryn James, DiCaprio is unafraid of working with established directors on unconventional projects; taking such risks has led him to star in failed films like The Beach (2000), but also his successful collaborations with Martin Scorsese. DiCaprio has described his relationship with Scorsese as dreamlike and admires his knowledge of film, crediting
585-558: A Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor. Django Unchained grossed $ 425 million worldwide on a production budget of $ 100 million. In January 2013, DiCaprio said he would take a long break from acting to "fly around the world doing good for the environment". That year, he had four releases as an actor and a producer. His first was in the role of millionaire Jay Gatsby in Baz Luhrmann's The Great Gatsby , an adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald 's 1925 novel of
702-707: A Golden Globe for Blood Diamond . In 2007, DiCaprio produced the comedy drama Gardener of Eden , which according to The Hollywood Reporter ' s Frank Scheck "lack[ed] the necessary dramatic urgency or black humor to connect with audiences". Later that year, he produced, co-wrote and narrated The 11th Hour , a documentary on the state of the natural environment that won the Earthwatch Environmental Film Award in 2008. DiCaprio's Appian Way produced Planet Green 's Greensburg (2008–2010), which ran for three seasons. Set in Greensburg, Kansas , it
819-660: A Time in Hollywood with Brad Pitt and Margot Robbie . George DiCaprio DiCaprio was born to George Leon DiCaprio and Olga Anne Jacobs. His father was the son of Italian immigrants, Salvatore Di Caprio and Rosina Cassella, and his mother was of German descent. DiCaprio was active in underground comix throughout the 1970s, as a writer, editor, publisher, and distributor. He is known for such titles as Greaser Comics , Forbidden Knowledge , and Cocaine Comix , collaborating with artists such as Laurie Anderson , Pete von Sholly, and Rich Chidlaw. (His own self-publishing imprint
936-420: A U.S. Marshal investigating a psychiatric facility located on an island, who comes to question his own sanity. DiCaprio and Scorsese became interested in the project in 2007, and the former co-produced the film under Appian Way with Phoenix Pictures . Because of the film's disturbing scenes, DiCaprio had nightmares of mass murder during production and considered relaxing with his friends a form of therapy. The film
1053-475: A bad film in the previous ten years. Of his success, DiCaprio says, "My attitude is the same as when I started. I feel very connected to that fifteen-year-old kid who got his first movie." DiCaprio has named Robert De Niro and James Dean as two of his favorite and most influential actors, stating "There were a lot of great actors I really fell in love with, but if I were to pick two, from different generations, it would be De Niro and James Dean". When asked about
1170-503: A bidding war with Warner Bros. against Brad Pitt and Paramount Pictures for the rights to Belfort's memoir in 2007. He was fond of Belfort's honest and unapologetic portrayal of his actual experiences in the book, and was inspired by the financial crisis of 2007–2008 to make the film. The Wolf of Wall Street received positive reviews for Scorsese's and DiCaprio's work together. The Hollywood Reporter 's Todd McCarthy lauded DiCaprio for fully realizing his character's potential with
1287-647: A brief featured role in Woody Allen 's 1998 satire of fame, Celebrity . Ebiri labeled DiCaprio "the best thing in the film". That year, he also took on the dual roles of villainous King Louis XIV and his secret, sympathetic twin brother Philippe in Randall Wallace 's The Man in the Iron Mask , with common elements from the 1939 film of the same name and a 1929 film with Douglas Fairbanks . It received mixed to negative reviews, but grossed $ 180 million against
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#17330844874251404-434: A budget of $ 35 million. Entertainment Weekly critic Owen Gleiberman wrote that DiCaprio did not look old enough to play the part, but praised him as "a fluid and instinctive actor, with the face of a mischievous angel". The Guardian 's Alex von Tunzelmann was similarly impressed with the actor's performance but found his talent wasted in the film. DiCaprio won a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screen Couple for
1521-452: A budget of $ 52 million, becoming his second highest-grossing release after Titanic . Roger Ebert praised his departure from dark and troubled characters, and two Entertainment Weekly critics in 2018 called it DiCaprio's best role, labeling him "delightfully persuasive, deceptive, flirtatious, and sometimes tragic—and we dare you to find a better role, if you can". DiCaprio received his third Golden Globe nomination for his performance in
1638-461: A carefree performance. Jonathan Romney of Film Comment wrote that DiCaprio displays a great deal of comedic talent, excelling in "rubber-limbed slapstick " humor. The film earned him the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy and nominations for a BAFTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role, as well as Academy Awards for Best Actor and Best Picture. DiCaprio
1755-580: A character while concealing the actor" and "disappearing into [his] roles". According to Agnieszka Holland, who directed DiCaprio in Total Eclipse (1995), DiCaprio is "one of the most mature actors" she has worked with and is "courageous" in his choice of roles. Holland remarked that he does not rely on method acting but rather on a trick that allows him to truly "become the character". Meryl Streep , who co-starred with DiCaprio in Marvin's Room , said he possesses
1872-464: A close bond. DiCaprio and his mother later moved to other neighborhoods, such as Los Feliz . He has described his parents as " bohemian in every sense of the word" and as "the people I trust the most in the world". DiCaprio has stated that he grew up poor in a neighborhood plagued with prostitution, crime and violence. Attending the Los Angeles Center for Enriched Studies for four years and later
1989-421: A comedy-drama about a dysfunctional Iowa family. Caton-Jones recommended DiCaprio to director Lasse Hallström who was initially skeptical, as he considered DiCaprio too good-looking for the part. Hallström cast DiCaprio after he emerged as "the most observant" auditionee. To ensure authenticity in his portrayal, DiCaprio studied similarly impaired children and their mannerisms, and Hallström allowed him to create
2106-456: A critical and financial success, grossing $ 213 million against its budget of $ 110 million. Simond Braund of Empire thought DiCaprio convincingly played a complex role and highlighted the scenes depicting Hughes's paranoia and obsession. He received his first Golden Globe Award for Best Actor — Motion Picture Drama and nominations for an Academy Award , a BAFTA Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award . In 2006, DiCaprio starred in
2223-461: A developmentally disabled boy in What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993). DiCaprio achieved international stardom with the star-crossed romances Romeo + Juliet (1996) and Titanic (1997). After the latter became the highest-grossing film in the world at the time, he reduced his workload for a few years. In an attempt to shed his image of a romantic hero, DiCaprio sought roles in other genres, including
2340-536: A fully nude picture of him. He has said he does not believe in focusing on appearance—as this is only temporary and can negatively affect one's profession in the industry—and looks for career longevity instead. In 2005, DiCaprio was made a commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres by the French Minister of Culture for his contributions to the arts. In 2016, he was named one of the 100 most influential people in
2457-578: A group of male celebrities dubbed "the Pussy Posse" in the 1990s. In an infamous article published by New York Magazine in 1998, journalist Nancy Jo Sales criticized the group as men whose pursuit was to "chase girls, pick fights and not tip the waitress". During an unknown activity, DiCaprio got himself and friend Justin Herwick almost killed when his parachute failed to open, after which his instructor released an emergency core. In response, DiCaprio said he
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#17330844874252574-465: A percentage of the cinema ticket sales. The risk proved fruitful, as DiCaprio earned $ 50 million from the film, becoming his highest payday yet. DiCaprio starred as J. Edgar Hoover in Clint Eastwood 's J. Edgar (2011). A biopic about Hoover, the film focuses on his career as an FBI director, including an examination of his private life as an alleged closeted homosexual. Critics felt that
2691-479: A performance that prioritizes physicality over speech, and Nick De Semlyen of Empire noted that he uplifted the film. The film earned him numerous awards, including the Academy Award, BAFTA, Critics' Choice, Golden Globe and SAG Award for Best Actor. For the next three years, DiCaprio narrated documentaries and served as a producer for films. In 2016, he was an executive producer for The Ivory Game and Catching
2808-446: A performance that stayed with him the most, DiCaprio responded, "I remember being incredibly moved by Jimmy Dean, in East of Eden . There was something so raw and powerful about that performance. His vulnerability [...] his confusion about his entire history, his identity, his desperation to be loved. That performance just broke my heart." Climate change is real, it is happening right now. It
2925-411: A product of his environment". Peter Travers liked DiCaprio's pairing with Winslet and his multi-layered portrayal of an overwhelmed character, and Marshall Sella of GQ called it the "most mature and memorable performance of his lifetime". DiCaprio earned his seventh Golden Globes nomination for the film. Revolutionary Road grossed $ 75.9 million against its budget of $ 35 million. He ended
3042-436: A raw slab of bison's liver and sleep in animal carcasses. He also learned to shoot a musket, build a fire, speak two Native American languages ( Pawnee and Arikara ) and apply ancient healing techniques. Built on a budget of $ 135 million, the film earned $ 533 million worldwide. The film received positive reviews with particular praise for DiCaprio's acting. Mark Kermode of The Guardian wrote that DiCaprio shone with
3159-495: A strict mentoring style, after which DiCaprio's behavior began to improve. Bilge Ebiri of Rolling Stone found that the powerful bond between Barkin and DiCaprio elevated the film, praising DiCaprio's portrayal of his character's complex growth from a rebellious teen to an independent young man. This Boy's Life was the first film that gained him recognition. DiCaprio played the developmentally disabled brother of Johnny Depp 's character in What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993),
3276-470: A superstar, resulting in intense adoration among teenage girls and young women that became known as "Leo-mania". The film won 11 Academy Awards —the most wins for any film – including Best Picture , but DiCaprio's failure to gain a nomination led to a protest against the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) by more than 200 fans. He was nominated for other high-profile awards, including
3393-421: A talent agent, who knew his mother's friend, recommended him to casting directors, DiCaprio secured roles in about 20 commercials. By the early 1990s, DiCaprio began acting regularly on television, starting with a role in the pilot of The Outsiders (1990) and one episode of the soap opera Santa Barbara (1990), in which he played a teenage alcoholic. DiCaprio's career prospects improved when he
3510-606: A television series adaption of the 1973 namesake book . After being in development at National Geographic, it was released on Disney+ . That May, DiCaprio briefly featured in the finale of the miniseries The Last Dance . In 2021, DiCaprio appeared in Adam McKay 's satirical comedy Don't Look Up . He spent five months changing the film's script with McKay before agreeing to the part. Starring alongside Jennifer Lawrence as two astronomers attempting to warn humanity about an extinction-level comet, DiCaprio saw this film as an analogy of
3627-698: A viable future for planet Earth, and produced the short web documentaries Water Planet and Global Warning. The foundation has also funded debt-for-nature swaps . By 2018, the foundation had funded more than 200 projects, providing $ 100 million in support. He has been an active supporter of numerous environmental organizations and sat on the board of the World Wildlife Fund and International Fund for Animal Welfare . DiCaprio has owned environment-friendly electric-hybrid vehicles . His use of private jets and large yachts have been criticized as hypocritical due to their large carbon footprints . DiCaprio chaired
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3744-401: A wall magnified. It blew people's minds." DiCaprio played an important role in his son's early career as an actor. He used to screen scripts for him, and was instrumental in getting Leo to portray Arthur Rimbaud in the 1995 film Total Eclipse . Since 2008, DiCaprio works as an executive producer in the film industry, mainly for documentaries and short films; one of his first assignments
3861-468: A young man who has been committed to a mental asylum in Marvin's Room (1996), a family drama about two estranged sisters, played by Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton , who are reunited through tragedy. He played Hank, the troubled son of Streep's character. Lisa Schwarzbaum of Entertainment Weekly praised "the deeply gifted DiCaprio" for holding his own against veteran actresses Keaton and Streep, describing
3978-606: Is German and his father is of Italian and German descent. His maternal grandfather, Wilhelm Indenbirken, was German, and his maternal grandmother, Helene Indenbirken, was a Russian immigrant living in Germany. DiCaprio was raised Catholic . Sources have falsely claimed his maternal grandmother was born in Odesa , Ukraine; there is no evidence that DiCaprio has any relatives of Ukrainian birth or heritage. DiCaprio's parents named him Leonardo because his pregnant mother first felt him kick while she
4095-534: Is a common behavior for young people and describing him as a family-oriented person during the film's production. Considering DiCaprio to be conscious of his public reputation, The New York Times ' Caryn James credited him as one of the few actors to use his stardom to further social causes. Carole Cadwalladr of The Guardian said DiCaprio is "polite, charming, makes jokes, engages eye contact. And manages [...] to give almost no hint whatsoever of his actual personality." Life can get pretty monotonous. Acting
4212-468: Is a fictionalized account of the same-sex relationship between Arthur Rimbaud (DiCaprio) and Paul Verlaine ( David Thewlis ). DiCaprio was cast when River Phoenix died before filming began. Although the film failed commercially, it has been included in the catalog of the Warner Archive Collection , which releases classic and cult films from Warner Bros. ' library on home video. A review in
4329-514: Is about rebuilding the town in a sustainable way after being hit by the 2007 Greensburg tornado . Also in 2008, DiCaprio starred in Body of Lies , a spy film based on the novel of the same name . He played one of three agents battling a terrorist organization in the Middle East. Considering the film to be a throwback to political features of the 1970s like The Parallax View (1974) and Three Days of
4446-671: Is difficult to watch. The performance has a sharp, desperate intensity from beginning to end." Caryn James , also writing for The New York Times , said of his performances in This Boy's Life and What's Eating Gilbert Grape : "He made the raw, emotional neediness of those boys completely natural and powerful." DiCaprio's first role of 1995 was in Sam Raimi 's Western The Quick and the Dead . When Sony Pictures became dubious over DiCaprio's casting, co-star Sharon Stone paid his salary herself. The film
4563-486: Is fond of doing things that scare him. John McCain , who was a United States Senator for Arizona, called him "an androgynous wimp". DiCaprio found people's perception of him exaggerated, adding, "They want you miserable, just like them. They don't want heroes; what they want is to see you fall." Steven Spielberg , who directed him in Catch Me If You Can , defended DiCaprio's reputation as a "party boy", believing it
4680-412: Is like living multiple lives. When you make a movie, you go off to different places, live different cultures, investigate somebody else's reality, and you try to manifest that to the best of your ability. It is incredibly eye-opening. That's why I love acting. There's nothing as transformative as what a film, a documentary, can do to get people to care about something else besides their own lives. DiCaprio
4797-733: Is regarded as one of the finest actors of his generation. In a 2022 readers' poll by Empire , he was voted one of the 50 greatest actors of all time. The magazine praised his willingness to "go to the ends of the earth (often literally) to get under his characters' skin". Colin Covert of The Seattle Times similarly believed DiCaprio "redefines film stardom" through his willingness to take on challenging roles that few of his contemporaries are capable of performing. Since his international stardom with Titanic (1997), he has admitted feeling nervous about starring in big-budget studio films because of their hype and marketing campaigns. As an actor, he views film as
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4914-479: Is the most urgent threat facing our entire species, and we need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating. We need to support leaders around the world who do not speak for the big polluters, but who speak for all of humanity, for the indigenous people of the world, for the billions and billions of underprivileged people out there who would be most affected by this. For our children's children, and for those people out there whose voices have been drowned out by
5031-552: The San Francisco Chronicle called DiCaprio "his generation's great acting promise" but criticized the mismatch between Thewlis's "cultivated" British accent and DiCaprio's "Southern California twang". DiCaprio next starred opposite Claire Danes in Baz Luhrmann 's Romeo + Juliet (1996), an abridged modernization of William Shakespeare 's romantic tragedy , which retained the original Shakespearean dialogue. DiCaprio
5148-493: The Galápagos Islands . Leonardo DiCaprio filmography Leonardo DiCaprio is an American actor who began his career performing as a child on television. He appeared on the shows The New Lassie (1989) and Santa Barbara (1990) and also had long-running roles in the comedy-drama Parenthood (1990) and the sitcom Growing Pains (1991). DiCaprio played Tobias "Toby" Wolff opposite Robert De Niro in
5265-628: The Gulf of Thailand . Budgeted at $ 50 million, the film earned almost three times that at the box office, but was negatively reviewed by critics, and earned him a nomination for the Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor . Todd McCarthy of Variety thought DiCaprio gave a compelling performance but his character lacked defining qualities. The film received criticism for damaging the filming location in Thailand, after which DiCaprio worked to restore
5382-635: The Howard Hughes biopic The Aviator (2004) and the crime drama The Departed (2006). For his portrayal of Hughes in the former, DiCaprio won the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama and garnered his first nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actor . DiCaprio produced the environmental documentary The 11th Hour and the comedy drama Gardener of Eden in 2007. The following year, he reunited with Kate Winslet in
5499-710: The MTV Movie Award for Best Male Performance and his first nomination for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama . In 2002, DiCaprio played con-artist Frank Abagnale Jr. opposite Tom Hanks in the Steven Spielberg -directed biographical crime - drama Catch Me If You Can and also starred in the Martin Scorsese -directed historical drama Gangs of New York . He founded his own production company, Appian Way , in 2004. The next two films he starred in were both directed by Scorsese:
5616-614: The Sam Mendes -directed drama Revolutionary Road and appeared in the Ridley Scott -directed action film Body of Lies . DiCaprio reteamed with Scorsese in 2010 in the psychological thriller Shutter Island and also starred in the Christopher Nolan -directed science fiction heist thriller Inception . In 2011, he portrayed J. Edgar Hoover , the first director of the FBI , in
5733-414: The book of the same name by David Grann , for which he was paid $ 30 million. Initially signed for the heroic part of FBI agent Thomas Bruce White Sr. , DiCaprio insisted on playing the morally complex role of murderer Ernest Burkhart , leading to extensive script rewrites. Declaring it the best performance of DiCaprio's career, IndieWire 's David Ehrlich wrote that "his nuanced and uncompromising turn as
5850-893: The rights of Native Americans , along with mitigating climate change . That October, DiCaprio joined Mark Ruffalo in support of the Standing Rock tribe's opposition to the Dakota Access Pipeline . In April 2017, DiCaprio protested against President Donald Trump 's inaction on climate change by attending the People's Climate March . In July, a charity auction and celebrity concert arranged by DiCaprio's foundation had raised over $ 30 million in one night. The DiCaprio foundation donated $ 100 million in December ;2018 to fight climate change. In May 2021, DiCaprio pledged $ 43 million to enact conservation operations across
5967-468: The 100 most powerful people in entertainment from 2016 to 2019. A writer for the same magazine credits DiCaprio as the rare actor to have a successful career "without ever having made a comic book movie, family film or pre-branded franchise. Leo is the franchise." Stacey Wilson Hunt, analyzing his career in New York Magazine in 2016, opined DiCaprio, unlike most of his contemporaries, had not starred in
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#17330844874256084-453: The 2000s by producing director Jaume Collet-Serra 's psychological horror thriller film Orphan (2009), starring Vera Farmiga , Peter Sarsgaard and Isabelle Fuhrman . Although the film received mixed reviews, it was a commercial success. DiCaprio continued to collaborate with Scorsese in the 2010 psychological thriller film Shutter Island , based on the 2003 novel of the same name by Dennis Lehane . He played Edward "Teddy" Daniels,
6201-532: The 2002 crime dramas Catch Me If You Can and Gangs of New York ; the latter marked the first of his many successful collaborations with director Martin Scorsese . DiCaprio continued to gain acclaim for his performances in the biopic The Aviator (2004), the political thriller Blood Diamond (2006), the crime drama The Departed (2006) and the romantic drama Revolutionary Road (2008). He later made environmental documentaries and starred in several high-profile directors' successful projects, including
6318-547: The 2019 global warming documentary Ice on Fire , DiCaprio returned to acting following a four-year break in Quentin Tarantino's comedy-drama Once Upon a Time in Hollywood , which traces the relationship between Rick Dalton (DiCaprio), an aging television actor and his stuntman , Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt). To help the film's financing, DiCaprio and Pitt agreed to take a pay cut, and they each received $ 10 million. DiCaprio liked working with Pitt, and Tarantino described
6435-472: The Condor (1975), DiCaprio dyed his hair brown and wore brown contacts for the role. The film received mixed reviews from critics, and grossed $ 118 million against a budget of $ 67.5 million. Later in 2008, DiCaprio collaborated with Kate Winslet for the drama Revolutionary Road , directed by her then-husband Sam Mendes . As both actors had been reluctant to make romantic films similar to Titanic , it
6552-563: The French poet Arthur Rimbaud in Total Eclipse . The following year he played Romeo Montague in the Baz Luhrmann -directed film Romeo + Juliet (1996). DiCaprio starred with Kate Winslet in the James Cameron -directed film Titanic (1997). The film became the highest grossing at the worldwide box-office, and made him famous globally. For his performance as Jack Dawson , he received
6669-805: The Golden Globes and BAFTA Awards. In Blood Diamond , DiCaprio starred as a diamond smuggler from Rhodesia who is involved in the Sierra Leone Civil War . While filming, he worked with 24 orphaned children from the SOS Children's Village in Maputo , Mozambique , and said he was touched by his interactions with them. To prepare, he spent six months in Africa, learned about camouflage from people in South African military and interviewed and recorded people in
6786-664: The Seeds Elementary School, he later enrolled at the John Marshall High School . DiCaprio disliked public school and wanted to audition for acting jobs instead. He dropped out of high school later, eventually earning a general equivalency diploma . As a child, DiCaprio wanted to become either a marine biologist or an actor. He eventually favored the latter; he liked impersonating characters and imitating people, and enjoyed seeing their reactions to his acting. According to DiCaprio, his interest in performing began at
6903-576: The Sun ; he also produced, hosted and narrated the documentary Before the Flood about climate change . He produced the crime drama Live by Night (2016), which received unenthusiastic reviews and failed to recoup its $ 65 million production budget. His next production ventures were in 2018—the psychological horror Delirium and the commercially failed action–adventure Robin Hood . After producing and narrating
7020-748: The UN in April ;2016 prior to the signing of the Paris Climate Change Agreement . At a 2016 meeting with Pope Francis , DiCaprio donated to charity and discussed environmental issues with him. A few days later, possibly influenced by this meeting, the Pope said he would act in a charity film. DiCaprio traveled to Indonesia in early 2016 where he criticized the government's palm oil industry's slash-and-burn forest clearing methods. In July 2016, his foundation donated $ 15.6 million to help protect wildlife and
7137-538: The action thriller Inception (2010), the western Django Unchained (2012), the biopic The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), the survival drama The Revenant (2015)—for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor — the comedy-dramas Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019) and Don't Look Up (2021), and the crime drama Killers of the Flower Moon (2023). DiCaprio is the founder of Appian Way Productions —a production company that has made some of his films and
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#17330844874257254-482: The age of two when he went onto the stage at a performance festival and danced spontaneously to a positive response from the crowd. He was also motivated to learn acting when Farrar's appearance in a television commercial earned him $ 50,000. DiCaprio has said in interviews that his first television appearance was in the children's series Romper Room , and that he was dismissed from the show for being disruptive. The show's host has denied that any children were removed from
7371-418: The agent suggested DiCaprio change his name to Lenny Williams to appeal to American audiences, which he declined to do. DiCaprio remained jobless for a year and a half, although he had 100 auditions. Following this lack of success, DiCaprio was going to give up acting but his father persuaded him to persevere. Motivated by his father and by the prospect of financial security, he continued to audition. After
7488-586: The area. In the mid-1990s, DiCaprio agreed to be in the mostly improvised black-and-white short film Don's Plum as a favor to aspiring director R. D. Robb . When Robb expanded it to a full-length film, DiCaprio and co-star Tobey Maguire had its release blocked in the US and Canada by court order, arguing they never intended to make a feature film. The film premiered at the 2001 Berlin International Film Festival but remains obscure. DiCaprio turned down
7605-462: The best performances of DiCaprio's career, and Ian Sandwell of Digital Spy particularly liked the duo's chemistry, believing their scenes together to be some of the film's strongest parts. DiCaprio received nominations for an Oscar, a Golden Globe, a BAFTA Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award for Best Actor. The film earned $ 374 million against a budget of $ 90 million. In 2020, DiCaprio served as an executive producer for The Right Stuff ,
7722-520: The biographical coming-of-age drama This Boy's Life in 1993. In the same year, he had a supporting role as a developmentally disabled boy Arnie Grape in What's Eating Gilbert Grape , which earned him nominations for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor – Motion Picture . In 1995, DiCaprio played the leading roles of an American author Jim Carroll in The Basketball Diaries and
7839-592: The biopic J. Edgar . The following year, he played a supporting role in the Quentin Tarantino -directed western Django Unchained . DiCaprio starred in two film adaptations of novels in 2013; he first appeared as Jay Gatsby in the Luhrmann-directed adaptation of F. Scott Fitzgerald 's novel The Great Gatsby , and later as Jordan Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street , an adaptation of Belfort's memoir of
7956-489: The character using his own researched attributes. The film became a critical success. At 19, DiCaprio earned a National Board of Review Award , as well as nominations for a Golden Globe Award and an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, making him the seventh-youngest Oscar nominee in the category. "The film's real show-stopping turn comes from Mr. DiCaprio," wrote New York Times critic Janet Maslin , "who makes Arnie's many tics so startling and vivid that at first he
8073-507: The country to improve his accent. The film received generally favorable reviews, and DiCaprio was noted for his South African accent, which is generally known as difficult to imitate. Claudia Puig of the USA Today approvingly highlighted DiCaprio's transition from a boy to a man on screen, and Ann Hornaday of The Washington Post similarly noted his growth as an actor since The Departed . DiCaprio received nominations for an Academy Award and
8190-467: The cretinous Ernest Burkhart mines new wonders from the actor's long-standing lack of vanity". He received another Golden Globe nomination for his performance. DiCaprio will next star in Paul Thomas Anderson 's upcoming film The Battle of Baktan Cross , co-starring Sean Penn and Regina Hall . Early in his career, DiCaprio gained a reputation for his reckless behavior and intense partying with
8307-514: The crime film The Departed and the political war thriller Blood Diamond . In Scorsese's The Departed , DiCaprio played the role of Billy Costigan, a state trooper working undercover in the Irish Mob in Boston, someone he characterizes as being in a "constant 24-hour panic attack". DiCaprio especially liked the experience of working with co-star Jack Nicholson , describing a scene with him as "one of
8424-559: The director with having taught him its history and importance. Scorsese has commented on DiCaprio's ability to repeatedly demonstrate emotion on screen. Jesse Hassenger of The A.V. Club considers the duo's collaborations—which earned them the 2013 National Board of Review (Spotlight Award)—to be career-defining moments for both of them and as vital as Scorsese's acclaimed collaborations with Robert De Niro . Author Michael K. Hammond wrote that DiCaprio built his star reputation by demonstrating his acting ability, and praised him for "revealing
8541-467: The documentary series Greensburg (2008–2010)—and Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, a nonprofit organization devoted to promoting environmental awareness. A United Nations Messenger of Peace , he regularly supports charitable causes. In 2005, he was named a Commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for his contributions to the arts, and in 2016, he appeared in Time magazine's 100 most influential people in
8658-522: The dual roles in 1999. Also in 1998, DiCaprio was cast to star in American Psycho (2000) for a reported salary of $ 20 million; after disagreements with Oliver Stone on the film's direction, DiCaprio left the project, taking the lead role in The Beach instead. Adapted from Alex Garland 's 1996 novel , the film saw him play a backpacking American tourist who ends up in a secret island commune in
8775-599: The film become profitable only days after its release. Reviewing DiCaprio's early works, David Thomson of The Guardian called DiCaprio "a revelation" in What's Eating Gilbert Grape , "very moving" in This Boy's Life , "suitably desperate" in The Basketball Diaries and "a vital spark" in Romeo + Juliet . The latter earned DiCaprio a Silver Bear for Best Actor at the 1997 Berlin International Film Festival . He then portrayed
8892-413: The film in 2017, Vox contributor Alissa Wilkinson took note of DiCaprio's "boyish charm" and found his performance "natural and unaffected". The success of Titanic intensified DiCaprio's standing as a teen idol and romantic lead, an image from which he sought to dissociate himself. He reduced his workload "to learn to hear [his] own voice in choosing the roles" that he wanted to pursue. DiCaprio had
9009-847: The film lacked coherence overall but commended DiCaprio's performance. Roger Ebert praised DiCaprio's ability to bring depth and nuance to the character, suggesting that his performance conveyed aspects of Hoover's personality that were possibly even unknown to the man himself. Also in 2011, he produced Catherine Hardwicke 's romantic horror film Red Riding Hood . Though it was named one of the ten worst films of 2011 by Time magazine, it had moderate box-office returns. Also that year, DiCaprio's Appian Way produced George Clooney 's political drama The Ides of March , an adaptation of Beau Willimon 's 2008 play Farragut North . In 2012, DiCaprio starred as plantation owner Calvin Candie in Quentin Tarantino 's Spaghetti Western , Django Unchained . After reading
9126-648: The film was plagued by overshooting of budgets and producer-director disagreements, resulting in an eight-month shoot. With a budget of $ 103 million, the film was the most expensive Scorsese had ever made. DiCaprio was drawn to playing Amsterdam Vallon, the young leader of an Irish-American street gang, as it marked a shift from "boyish" roles to a mature leading man. Gangs of New York earned $ 193 million worldwide and received positive critical response. Anne Thompson of The Observer took note of DiCaprio's "low-key, sturdy performance", but felt that co-star Daniel Day-Lewis overshadowed him. In 2004, DiCaprio founded
9243-470: The film were mixed, most critics praised DiCaprio's and Lawrence's performances; journalists from Digital Spy and NDTV lauded their pairing. DiCaprio earned nominations for a Golden Globe and a BAFTA Award for the film. It broke the record for the most views (152 million hours) in a single week in Netflix history. DiCaprio next starred in Scorsese's crime drama Killers of the Flower Moon (2023) based on
9360-455: The film. Also in 2002, DiCaprio starred in Martin Scorsese 's Gangs of New York , a historical drama set in the mid-19th century in the Five Points district of New York City. Scorsese initially struggled selling his idea of realizing the film until DiCaprio became interested in starring in the film, and thus Miramax Films got involved with financing the project. Nonetheless, production on
9477-651: The kind of unpredictability that makes his career difficult to classify, his life precarious and his work thrilling. Writing for The Observer , film critic Philip French has asserted that many characters portrayed by DiCaprio are in the process of becoming men. He wrote that DiCaprio's inclination toward films about dysfunctional families and characters seeking father figures may allude to his own troubled childhood. DiCaprio often plays characters who themselves are playing roles, which Caryn James says looks simple on screen but requires sophisticated acting. He tends to play antiheroes and characters who lose their mental stability as
9594-580: The most memorable moments" of his life as an actor. In preparation, he visited Boston to interact with people associated with the Irish Mob and gained 15 pounds (6.8 kg) of muscle. Critically acclaimed, the film grossed $ 291 million against a budget of $ 90 million, becoming DiCaprio and Scorsese's highest-grossing collaboration to that point. Peter Travers of Rolling Stone praised DiCaprio's and co-star Matt Damon 's performances as "explosive, emotionally complex", but felt that Nicholson overshadowed
9711-612: The motions"; the commercially failed thriller Out of the Furnace ; and the black comedy-drama The Wolf of Wall Street . DiCaprio reunited with Scorsese for the fifth time in The Wolf of the Wall Street , a film based on the life of stockbroker Jordan Belfort (played by DiCaprio), who was arrested in the late 1990s for securities fraud and money laundering. DiCaprio wanted to play Belfort ever since he had read his autobiography and won
9828-402: The narrative progresses. Derek Thompson of The Atlantic argued that DiCaprio gives his best performances when playing "frauds and cheats and double-crossing liars and mercenaries". Several media publications, such as People , Empire and Harper's Bazaar , have included DiCaprio in their listings of the most attractive actors. In 1998, he sued Playgirl magazine over plans to publish
9945-524: The national Earth Day celebration in 2000 where he interviewed Bill Clinton and they discussed plans to deal with global warming and the environment. He presented at the 2007 American leg of Live Earth . DiCaprio donated $ 1 million to the Wildlife Conservation Society at Russia's Tiger Summit. DiCaprio's persistence in reaching the event after encountering two plane delays caused then Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to describe him as
10062-468: The pair as the most exciting since Robert Redford and Paul Newman . DiCaprio was fascinated with the film's homage to Hollywood and focus on the friendship between his and Pitt's characters. He drew from real-life experience of witnessing the struggles and rejections of his actor friends in the industry. The film premiered at the 2019 Cannes Film Festival , where critics praised his and Pitt's performances. A writer for Business Insider called it one of
10179-572: The politics of greed. An active celebrity in the climate change movement , DiCaprio believes global warming is the world's "number-one environmental challenge". Eager to learn about ecology from an early age, he would watch documentaries on rainforest depletion and the loss of species and habitats. In 1998, he established the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, a non-profit organization devoted to promoting environmental awareness. It supports organizations and campaigns committed to ensuring
10296-470: The production company Appian Way Productions , a namesake of the Italian road . He was interested in finding unique source material and preserving its essence during development, citing previous experiences where the involvement of too many people influenced the final product in a negative way. DiCaprio first executive-produced The Assassination of Richard Nixon , which starred Sean Penn as Samuel Byck , and
10413-769: The role of Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones (2002), feeling unprepared to "take that dive" at the time. His first film that year was the biopic Catch Me If You Can , based on the life of Frank Abagnale Jr. , who before his 19th birthday committed check fraud to make millions in the 1960s. Directed by Steven Spielberg , the film was shot across 147 different locations in 52 days, making it "the most adventurous, super-charged movie-making" DiCaprio had experienced yet. The film received critical acclaim and grossed $ 355 million against
10530-903: The same name , co-starring Carey Mulligan and Tobey Maguire. The film received mixed reviews from critics, but DiCaprio's performance was praised and earned him the AACTA Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role . Critic Rafer Guzman of Newsday wrote that DiCaprio was not only "tough [...] but also vulnerable, touching, funny, a faker, a human. It's a tremendous, hard-won performance." Matt Zoller Seitz of Roger Ebert's website described his performance as "the movie's greatest and simplest special effect", and "iconic—maybe his career best". The film grossed $ 353 million worldwide, more than three times its budget. Three films were produced by DiCaprio under Appian Way in 2013—the ensemble crime thriller Runner Runner , which The Guardian ' s Xan Brooks described as "a lazy, trashy film that barely goes through
10647-470: The same name. The latter earned him a third Academy Award nomination for Best Actor and a Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Musical or Comedy . In 2015, DiCaprio played fur trapper Hugh Glass in the survival drama The Revenant , for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor. In 2019, he starred as an actor on the decline in the Tarantino-directed comedy-drama Once Upon
10764-478: The script, DiCaprio felt uncomfortable with the extent of racism portrayed in the film, but his co-stars and Tarantino convinced him not to sugarcoat it. While filming, DiCaprio accidentally cut his hand on glass, but continued filming, and Tarantino elected to use the take in the final product. The film received critical acclaim; a writer for Wired magazine commended him for playing a villainous role and found his performance "blood-chilling". The film earned DiCaprio
10881-404: The show in this way. At 14, he began appearing in several commercials for Matchbox cars, which he calls his first role. DiCaprio later appeared in commercials for Kraft Singles , Bubble Yum and Apple Jacks . In 1989, he played the role of Glen in two episodes of the television show The New Lassie . At the beginning of his career, DiCaprio had difficulty finding an agent. When he found one,
10998-476: The three as "full-bodied and so powerfully affecting that you're carried along on the pleasure of being in the presence of their extraordinary talent". DiCaprio rejected a role in Boogie Nights (1997) to star opposite Kate Winslet in James Cameron 's Titanic as members of different social classes who fall in love aboard RMS Titanic during its ill-fated maiden voyage. DiCaprio initially had doubts, but
11115-599: The two. Despite DiCaprio's leading role in The Departed , the film's distributor Warner Bros. Pictures submitted his performance for a Best Supporting Actor nomination at the AMPAS to avoid internal conflict with his part in Blood Diamond . Instead, his co-star Mark Wahlberg was nominated, though DiCaprio earned other accolades for The Departed , including a Satellite Award for Best Supporting Actor and Best Actor nominations at
11232-509: The world by Time magazine. He was included on Forbes ' annual list of the world's highest-paid actors in 2008 and from 2010 to 2016 with respective earnings of $ 45 million, $ 28 million, $ 77 million, $ 37 million, $ 39 million, $ 39 million, $ 29 million and $ 27 million, topping the list in 2011. The magazine has commended DiCaprio's ability to star in risky, R-rated films that become box office successes. The Hollywood Reporter listed him as one of
11349-527: The world . DiCaprio was voted one of the 50 greatest actors of all time in a 2022 readers' poll by Empire . Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio was born on November 11, 1974, in Los Angeles, California. He is the only child of Irmelin Indenbirken, a legal secretary, and George DiCaprio , an underground comix artist and distributor. They met while attending college and moved to Los Angeles after graduating. His mother
11466-505: The world's highest-paid actors . Born in Los Angeles, DiCaprio began his career in the late 1980s by appearing in television commercials. In the early 1990s, he had recurring roles in various television shows, such as the sitcom Parenthood , and had his first major film part as author Tobias Wolff in This Boy's Life (1993). He received critical acclaim and his first Academy Award and Golden Globe Award nominations for his performance as
11583-404: The world's indifference to the climate crisis . As a frequent supporter of environmentalism, DiCaprio said he has often looked to star in and make films tackling issues related to it, something he found hard due to people's inability to listen. He praised McKay for envisioning a project on how humans would react to a serious issue from a political, social and scientific standpoint. While reviews for
11700-452: The worst films of all time" and the kind of role he wanted to avoid in the future. Later in 1991, he became a recurring cast member on the sitcom Growing Pains , playing Luke Brower, a homeless boy who is taken in by the show's central family. Co-star Joanna Kerns recalls DiCaprio being "especially intelligent and disarming for his age" but she noted that he was also mischievous and jocular on set, and often made fun of his co-stars. DiCaprio
11817-533: Was Winslet who suggested that they both work with her on a film adaptation of the 1961 eponymous novel by Richard Yates . She found that the script, by Justin Haythe , had little in common with the 1997 blockbuster. Playing a couple in a failing marriage in the 1950s, DiCaprio and Winslet spent some time together in preparation, and DiCaprio felt claustrophobic on the small set they used. He saw his character as "unheroic", "slightly cowardly" and someone "willing to be just
11934-480: Was a contestant on the children's game show Fun House , on which he performed several stunts, including catching the fish inside a small pool using only his teeth. DiCaprio made his film debut in 1991 as the stepson of an unscrupulous landlord in the low-budget horror sequel Critters 3 – a part he later described as "your average, no-depth, standard kid with blond hair". DiCaprio has stated that he prefers not to remember Critters 3 , viewing it as "possibly one of
12051-510: Was an executive producer on Virunga , a 2014 British documentary film about four people fighting to protect the world's last mountain gorillas from war and poaching. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in April 2014, and DiCaprio was nominated for the 2015 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Documentary or Nonfiction Special . Cowspiracy: The Sustainability Secret
12168-461: Was another documentary film that year for which he was an executive producer—he took part in the new cut released exclusively on Netflix that September. It explores the impact of animal agriculture on the environment. In 2015, DiCaprio produced and played fur trapper Hugh Glass in Alejandro G. Iñárritu 's survival drama The Revenant . DiCaprio found his role in the film difficult; he had to eat
12285-468: Was as a co-executive producer of the TV series Greensburg , initiated by his son Leonardo. In 2021, he made his film acting debut, portraying Mr. Jack in Paul Thomas Anderson 's film Licorice Pizza . DiCaprio met Irmelin Indenbirken (born 1945), a German immigrant, in college; the two later married and moved to Los Angeles. The couple had one son, Leonardo DiCaprio , and divorced shortly after, when Leonardo
12402-483: Was cast by the producers to appeal to young female audience, but his arrival did not improve the show's ratings and he left before the end of its run. He was nominated for a Young Artist Award for Best Young Actor Co-starring in a Television Series. DiCaprio also had an uncredited role in 1991 in one episode of Roseanne . In 1992, DiCaprio had a brief role in the first installment of the Poison Ivy film series , and
12519-604: Was cast in Parenthood , a series based on the 1989 comedy film of the same name . To prepare for the role of Garry Buckman, a troubled teenager, he analyzed Joaquin Phoenix 's performance in the original film. His work that year earned him two nominations at the 12th Youth in Film Awards —Best Young Actor in a Daytime Series for Santa Barbara and Best Young Actor Starring in a New Television Series for Parenthood . Around this time, he
12636-441: Was eventually encouraged by Cameron to pursue the part. With a production budget of more than $ 200 million, the film was the most expensive in history at the time, and was shot at Rosarito, Baja California where a replica of the ship was created. Titanic became the highest-grossing film at the time, eventually earning more than $ 2.1 billion in box-office receipts worldwide. The role of Jack Dawson transformed DiCaprio into
12753-430: Was fascinated with the idea of a "dream-heist" and the potential for his character to manipulate his dreamworld and impact his real life. Made on a budget of $ 160 million, the film grossed $ 836 million worldwide to become DiCaprio's second highest-grossing film. To star in this film, DiCaprio agreed to a pay cut from his $ 20 million fee and opted for a share in first-dollar gross points, which entitled him to
12870-425: Was handpicked by Robert De Niro from a shortlist of 400 young actors to co-star with him in This Boy's Life . Adapted from the memoir by Tobias Wolff , the film focuses on the relationship between a rebellious teenager, Toby (DiCaprio), and his mother ( Ellen Barkin ) and abusive stepfather (De Niro). Director Michael Caton-Jones said that DiCaprio did not know how to behave on set; accordingly, Caton-Jones used
12987-426: Was in Christopher Nolan 's critically acclaimed ensemble science-fiction film Inception . Inspired by the experience of lucid dreaming and dream incubation , the film features Dom Cobb (DiCaprio), an "extractor" who enters the dreams of others to obtain information that is otherwise inaccessible. Cobb is promised a chance to regain his old life in exchange for planting an idea in a corporate target's mind. DiCaprio
13104-401: Was initially unsure about another Romeo and Juliet adaptation, but at his father's suggestion, he agreed to examine Luhrmann's work more closely. DiCaprio and Luhrmann then spent a two-week workshop exchanging ideas, which led to the collaboration. Romeo + Juliet established DiCaprio as a leading Hollywood actor; according to film scholar Murray Pomerance , DiCaprio's newfound popularity helped
13221-482: Was known as Half-Ass Press .) As a distributor in the 1970s and 1980s, he supplied West Coast retailers with underground and independent comics. He was also a performance artist . Comics writer Harvey Pekar details a DiCaprio performance in Los Angeles in February 1988 where DiCaprio claimed that he did "a light show using brine shrimp and worms. I'd hit 'em with cold water and they'd move around and I'd project 'em on
13338-565: Was looking at a Leonardo da Vinci painting in the Uffizi museum in Florence , Italy. When DiCaprio was one year old, his parents divorced after his father fell in love with another woman and moved out. To raise him together, his parents moved into twin cottages with a shared garden in Echo Park, Los Angeles . DiCaprio's father lived with his girlfriend and her son, Adam Farrar, with whom DiCaprio developed
13455-476: Was released to dismal box office performance and mixed reviews from critics. DiCaprio next starred as a teenage Jim Carroll , a drug-addicted high school basketball player and budding writer, in the biopic The Basketball Diaries . He starred in the erotic drama Total Eclipse (1995), driven by the desire to showcase an exceptional performance, which would focus on his acting talent rather than his much-discussed physical appeal. Directed by Agnieszka Holland , it
13572-449: Was released to mixed reviews; Peter Bradshaw of The Guardian praised Scorsese's direction and the acting but criticized its twist ending. Peter Travers called it DiCaprio's "most haunting and emotionally complex performance yet", and particularly liked his cave scene with co-star Patricia Clarkson . The film was a commercial success, grossing $ 294 million worldwide against a budget of $ 80 million. DiCaprio's second role in 2010
13689-453: Was screened at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival . DiCaprio and Scorsese reunited for a biopic of Howard Hughes , an American film director and aviation pioneer suffering from obsessive–compulsive disorder , in The Aviator (2004), which DiCaprio also co-produced under Appian Way. He initially developed the project with Michael Mann who was eventually replaced by Scorsese. The Aviator became
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