10 things you should know about Leonardo DiCaprio
The protagonist of 'Titanic' turns 41 this Wednesday. These are the essential data about the actor's life
Leonardo DiCaprio, who celebrates his birthday this Wednesday, was born 41 years ago in Los Angeles. Although he is known for his performance in Titanic, the actor began his career a few years earlier. In December he will return to the big screen with the film The Revenant, in which he plays the character of Hugh Glass. DiCaprio has become an important patron of art and protector of the environment in recent years, hosting dinners and attending charity events in which he invests large amounts of money.
Here are the 10 essential things you should know about the actor:
1. His first roles
His television debut came in 1990 with the series Parenthood and later he got small roles in others such as The New Lassie or Roseanne. On the big screen, DiCaprio made his debut in the horror film Critters 3, but the actor's great success came with This Boy's Life, when Robert De Niro selected him from among 400 young people to star in the lead role in the film. In addition, as a child he won a breakdancing contest in Germany.
2. Oscar Award
Leonardo DiCaprio has been nominated for an Oscar five times, but never has. Best Supporting Actor for Who does Gilbert Grape love ?, Best Actor for The Aviator, Blood Diamond and The Wolf of Wall Street (film that also chose the Best Picture award, of which Dicaprio was a producer). In Hollywood many joke with the subject and speak of "the curse" of the actor. Maybe the sixth time will be the charm.
3. His model girlfriends
The protagonist of The Wolf of Wall Street has dated at least 12 models: Gisele Bündchen, Naomi Campbell, Helena Christensen, Bijou Phillips, Amber Valletta, Eva Herzigova, Bar Rafaeli, Anne Vyalitsyna, Madalina Ghenea, Erin Heatherton, Toni Garrn and Miranda Kerr. Most of them are blonde, tall and with sculptural bodies.
4. Leonardo Da Vinci
His parents decided to name him after the Renaissance painter because his mother was looking at a painting of it when she first felt a kick from little DiCaprio. His mother is German and his father Italian.
6. Environmental activism
The actor is a committed environmentalist who has fought against global warming since the foundation that bears his name. He produces documentaries for the Netflix network focused on the conservation of nature - such as Virunga, which deals with gorillas -, has projected an eco-sustainable tourist complex in Belize and has even acquired the rights to a book on the Volkswagen scandal to take it to the big screen. The interpreter has donated four million euros to help protect the Siberian tiger and another million for elephants and has even sold his watch and a house at his charity gala this summer in Saint Tropez.
7. Art collector
Leonardo DiCaprio is also an avid art collector who keeps works by Picasso, Salvador Dalí, Takashi Murakami, Sarah Lucas, Ed Ruscha or Elisabeth Payton within his walls. He is a regular at the most famous art fair in the world: Art Basel and he has even co-chaired the Art + Film Gala at the Los Angeles Museum of Art.
8. The roles he did not play
He was considered for the role of Michael Pitt in The Dreamers and also for Tobey Maguire in Spiderman. And Dicaprio refused to play the character of Hans Landa in Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds.
9. Your favorites
His favorite drink is lemonade, his bedside book is The Old Man and the Sea, by Hemingway, he admires Robert de Niro, Jack Nicolson, Al Pacino and Marlon Brando and his best friends are P. Diddy, Mark Wahleberg and Tobey Maguire.
10. On the brink of death
Throughout his 41 years, he has survived two incidents that could have cost him his life; in 2004 he suffered a skydiving accident and in 2007 he was attacked by a white shark while accompanying activists feeding sharks.
