The actor-director duo of Leonardo DiCaprio and Martin Scorsese have the golden touch in Hollywood. Between 2002 and 2023, DiCaprio starred in 6 feature films and one short film directed by the prolific filmmaker. Together, the two celebrities have covered the gamut of genres and roles from Gangs of New York, Shutter Island, The Departed, to their latest collaboration Killers of the Flower Moon.
The Titanic star has pushed the envelope and portrayed some of the most complex characters in Scorsese’s films. 2004’s biographical drama The Aviator was the 2nd film that the pair worked on together and by DiCaprio’s own admission, was one of the roles that resulted in a lot of difficulty and mental anguish for the star.
The Aviator Pushed Leonardo DiCaprio To The Limit
IN 2004, Martin Scorsese cast Leonardo DiCaprio in The Aviator, a biographical drama based on successful film producer and aviation magnate Howard Hughes who gradually becomes unstable owing to Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). The film went on to receive positive responses for DiCaprio’s involved performance and Scorsese’s intuitive direction. But The Revenant star confessed that transforming into the complex persona of Howard Hughes took a big mental toll on him. Elaborating specifically on his preparation for the scene which shows the character’s mental breakdown, DiCaprio said,
“You get into your own headspace and really don’t want to talk to anyone. I spent a lot of time just sitting around the screening room alone”.
The Shutter Island star went on to state that despite the challenges, he felt that the effort was completely worth it after watching the film and the impact it had on audiences and critics worldwide.
Leonardo DiCaprio Almost Did Not Star In Titanic
James Cameron’s Titanic is one of the most successful films of all time, earning 11 out of 14 Oscars at the Academy Awards in 1998. The film won great acclaim not just for Cameron’s mastery behind the lens, but also for the timeless chemistry between its two lead actors, Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet. But Cameron revealed some intriguing facts about his leading man whom he almost did not cast due to DiCaprio’s negativity during auditions.
The director speaking about the incident, said that the actor refused to read lines that were given to him saying that he wasn’t in the habit of reading for his roles. Cameron who was thrown off and irritated, decided to bluntly initiate DiCaprio into the workings of his mind and said,
“Oh, yeah. Come on. This is, like, a giant movie that’s gonna take two years of my life … so I’m not gonna f**k it up by making the wrong decision in casting. So you’re gonna read, or you’re not gonna get the part.”
Leonardo DiCaprio was then quick to understand what was expected of him and jumped on board by seamlessly transforming into his character Jack. The rest is history and the result is there permanently for everyone to see.
Source: Pop Entertainment
