Leonardo DiCaprio biography, girlfriend, Oscar, net worth, age, young 2024

Leonardo DiCaprio Biography

A bohemian child, a favorite of Martin Scorsese, Christopher Nolan, and Quentin Tarantino, an Oscar winner for Best Actor and a Golden Raspberry Award recipient for Worst Actor, a producer, an idol of millions of female hearts, and a coveted bachelor – all of these describe Leonardo DiCaprio.

Childhood and Family

Leonardo is the only child of Irmelin Indenbirken and George DiCaprio. They were college students when they met; later, she worked as a court secretary and he became a comic book distributor and artist, contributing to what some experts call the "comic book revolution of the 60s."

Even before birth, the future star showed his affinity for art. He began kicking in his mother's womb as she admired the works of Leonardo da Vinci in Florence's Uffizi Gallery. George decided it was a sign from his unborn son that he should be named Leonardo! Therefore, when the boy was born on November 11, 1974, in Los Angeles, he was named Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio.

The actor's ancestry includes Italian, German, and Russian roots. His maternal grandmother, named Yelizaveta Smirnova, fled with her parents from the aftermath of the revolution to Germany as a young girl. She assimilated, changed her name to Helene, married a German, took the surname Indenbirken, but never forgot her native language. Leonardo's mother was born in 1943, during the height of World War II, on the floor of a bomb shelter. The Indenbirken family never supported the Nazis' atrocities, and in 1955, as soon as the opportunity arose, they emigrated to New York.

Leonardo DiCaprio's grandmother (center) was born in the Russian Empire

Leonardo's parents divorced when he was a year old. George moved to East Hollywood. Leo lived with his father and his new girlfriend Peggy Farrar, who had a son, Adam, from a previous marriage, and sometimes with his mother. He preferred spending time at his father's house, which had a bohemian atmosphere frequented by artists and cultural figures like Matt Groening and Timothy Leary.

His mother drove him to a prestigious elementary school at the university, spending four hours on the road every day. Then came four years at a school for gifted children, but he found it difficult to focus on academic subjects.

Whether it was the fiery mix of Italian blood from his father's side and German and Russian from his mother's, or participating in a children's TV show at 2.5 years old, by 14, he knew for certain he wanted to be an actor.

His last school was John Marshall High School. Despite his parents' early divorce, Leonardo always felt support from his father, a comic book artist. They encouraged and nurtured their son's creative nature, supporting his early interest in acting.

When Leonardo was 11, his grandparents returned to Germany. He maintained a relationship with them, often visiting his beloved grandmother until her death in 2008. It was Elena who introduced Leo to the works of Dostoevsky and explained that drama was a lens through which human character is reflected.

'I loved imitating people... I enjoyed making jokes with my parents and creating different characters,' the actor recalls of his childhood.

Leonardo admitted he grew up in poverty: "Our family was poor, truly poor." At the same time, he is grateful to his parents for teaching him to be content with little, to ignore where clothes or food were bought because it doesn't matter if you have something to wear and you're not starving. They also taught him not to indulge in self-pity, to focus on his goals and pursue them step by step. That's why DiCaprio dislikes talk that he "just got lucky by being in the right place, meaning born in Hollywood."

Childhood Roles

Leonardo DiCaprio's acting career began at a tender age. At five, he was invited to join the preschool TV show Romper Room, which had been on air since the early 50s. However, before he could settle in on set, he was dismissed from the show for bad behavior.

Leonardo DiCaprio in Romper Room

Years later, when his older stepbrother Adam Farrar, three years his senior, started to appear in commercials and soon became highly sought after, a 13-year-old Leonardo was inspired by his example and demanded that his parents take him to an audition too.

Leonardo DiCaprio and his older stepbrother Adam

The first commercial featuring a young Leonardo DiCaprio was for Matchbox toy cars. The young actor played a gangster. "What did I learn from my first shoot? 'Know your lines by heart.' I was just terribly nervous and forgot everything," he said later. Then came commercials for Apple Jacks oat cereal, Kraft Singles cheese, Bubble Yum gum, Fred Meyer hypermarkets, and Honda and Suzuki cars.

Young Leonardo DiCaprio in a Bubble Yum commercial

As is often the case, the blonde-haired boy with the angelic face was soon noticed by TV casting managers, and by the early 90s, he was regularly busy with television shows. He appeared in "Santa Barbara," "The New Lassie," and the comedy series "Parenthood."

A still from the series 'The New Lassie'

In 1991, the young actor's career took a significant leap forward. First, it was a role in the series "Growing Pains," and the opportunity to work with Kirk Cameron and Alan Thicke. That same year, he made his debut in the low-budget but popular horror-comedy "Critters 3." This was followed by a cameo in the teen drama "Poison Ivy" with Drew Barrymore and Sara Gilbert.

Two years later, Leo had the chance to showcase his talent as a serious actor. In the film "This Boy's Life," he played his first dramatic role as a teenager caught in a difficult family situation, with the legendary Robert De Niro playing the malevolent stepfather. His on-screen friend was future "Spider-Man" Tobey Maguire. Since then, he and Tobey have remained friends.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Robert De Niro in the film 'This Boy's Life'

Breakthrough

In 1993, following the critically acclaimed "This Boy's Life," the drama "What's Eating Gilbert Grape?" was released, starring Johnny Depp as the lead character. Leonardo, though nearly 20, played a mentally challenged teenager so convincingly that he was nominated for an Oscar.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Johnny Depp in 'What's Eating Gilbert Grape?'

DiCaprio continued to work on interesting film projects. He starred in the 1995 drama "The Basketball Diaries." Later, he worked with Russell Crowe, Sharon Stone, and Gene Hackman in "The Quick and the Dead." In the film "Romeo + Juliet" (1996), he co-starred with Claire Danes. The modern love story, created by Baz Luhrmann based on William Shakespeare's immortal tragedy, was touching, and grossed $147 million worldwide.

Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes in the film 'Romeo + Juliet'

DiCaprio became a superstar in 1997 after another, no less tragic, love story with Kate Winslet's character against the backdrop of the sinking of the "Titanic." The film made history as a sort of record holder: it won 11 Oscar statues, had an astronomical budget of $200 million for that time, worldwide box office receipts exceeded $1.5 billion, and Leo became a beloved idol of millions of viewers, especially women.

Titanic – My Heart Will Go On

James Cameron did not make a mistake in choosing the actors. The film's success showed that Leonardo could handle traditional Hollywood roles. He became a global celebrity and was named by the American magazine "People" as one of the 50 most beautiful people in 1997-1998.

Career Blossoming

After "Titanic," there was a slight downturn in his career, as "The Man in the Iron Mask" (1998) and "The Beach" (2000) were not successful either financially or artistically. Even the star-studded trio of Jeremy Irons, Gérard Depardieu, and John Malkovich could not save "The Man in the Iron Mask." However, Leo soon restored his reputation.

Leonardo DiCaprio talks TV commercials, Titanic fame, The Beach & more

He showcased his talent in two notable films. In 2002, he starred in Steven Spielberg's "Catch Me If You Can" alongside Tom Hanks and in "Gangs of New York." The latter became the first of many projects in which the actor would work with Hollywood legend, director Martin Scorsese.

Leonardo DiCaprio with Tom Hanks in 'Catch Me If You Can'

In "The Aviator" (2004), DiCaprio took on the role of one of America's most famous businessmen. Cate Blanchett played his love interest. In 2006, he starred in two iconic films: "Blood Diamond" and "The Departed." In the latter, a brilliant acting trio was formed with Matt Damon and Jack Nicholson.

Leonardo DiCaprio (The Aviator Interview) Charlie Rose 2005

In 2008, Leonardo reunited with Kate Winslet in "Revolutionary Road," a tense drama about a couple living in the mid-20th century and facing personal issues. Then, in 2010, he explored a fantastical future in Christopher Nolan's "Inception," where technology allows invading other people's dreams and subconscious.

Leonardo DiCaprio in the movie 'Inception'

That same year, DiCaprio starred in the thriller "Shutter Island" with Mark Ruffalo.

Leonardo DiCaprio in the thriller 'Shutter Island'

"J. Edgar" – a drama directed by Clint Eastwood in 2011, featured DiCaprio as J. Edgar Hoover, who led the FBI for nearly 50 years. The actor found the preparatory work difficult because the film was autobiographical and many witnesses to the events were still alive.

In 2013, Leonardo worked with Quentin Tarantino on "Django Unchained," starring alongside Kerry Washington, Jamie Foxx, and Christoph Waltz.

Leonardo DiCaprio in the film 'Django Unchained'

Also in 2013, he returned to work with Scorsese on the drama "The Wolf of Wall Street," based on the memoirs of Jordan Belfort, a notorious financial scammer who deceived investors in the 1990s. The movie later caused legal problems with Belfort's former assistant. Andrew Greene filed a lawsuit for defamation because his former boss's prototype "is portrayed as a criminal, drug addict, debauched and devoid of any morals."

Who's the Boss? - The Wolf Of Wall Street

At the end of 2015, Leonardo DiCaprio starred in a film directed by Alejandro González Iñárritu, playing frontiersman Hugh Glass, forced to survive the inhuman conditions of a cold winter in the early 19th century Wild West. Betrayed and left to die in the snow, Glass crawled 300 kilometers and was repeatedly on the brink of death before reaching the fort and avenging his would-be killer.

According to Leonardo, the scariest part of filming was the silence. For three-quarters of the screen time, he is alone (not counting the bear, which his character ultimately defeats with his bare hands).

...I need to become one with nature, to have a silent conversation with the snow, the trees, the animals, the moon in the sky. It's incredibly hard.

The moral pressure was compounded by terrible physical pain. But the director of "The Revenant" is a man of principle who despises green screens. Someone else might have taken pity on the actor and allowed snow to be digitally added, but not Iñárritu. Throughout the filming day, DiCaprio worked in the freezing cold. His hands, feet, ears, and cheeks went numb.

On screen, Leonardo eats real bison liver. The horse carcass he slept in is also real, and he truly climbed inside it.

Leonardo received an Oscar for "The Revenant." It was in 2016, after 4 nominations, that he was awarded the highest accolade for acting excellence. In his acceptance speech, he spoke about climate change and the real threat that humanity poses to the planet.

Leonardo DiCaprio winning Best Actor (2016)

In 2018, Quentin Tarantino gathered an impressive cast for the crime drama "Once Upon a Time in Hollywood." In 2019, audiences saw the stunning duo of DiCaprio and Brad Pitt. Leonardo plays western star Rick Dalton, possibly modeled after Burt Reynolds, at the junction of Old and New Hollywood.

On the set of 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood'

Dalton realizes he's past his prime, has aged, and can no longer play handsome cowboys, and audiences are no longer interested in repetitive westerns. It's an era of new directors who are frank with the audience: Roman Polanski, Martin Scorsese, Woody Allen. All Dalton has left is to lead an idle lifestyle in the company of stuntman Cliff Booth and hope for a contract to shoot a movie in Italy.

A still from 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood'

Especially, viewers appreciated DiCaprio's monologue on the set, where he recounts to a young actress (Julia Butters) the story of a crippled horse wrangler, as well as the moments of filming the western where he no longer has the lead role but the role of the villain, which he plays brilliantly, even though he realizes that from now on, it's unlikely he'll land a protagonist role in any significant project.

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood - Rick Dalton going mad in Trailer

In 2021, DiCaprio played one of the main roles in the satirical comedy "Don't Look Up." He portrays an astronomer whose student (Jennifer Lawrence) discovers a comet hurtling towards Earth. The calculations show that the planet and all life will be annihilated. The professor and the student try to alert politicians and the general public, but everyone is more interested in watching the breakup of yet another pop star, while some simply choose not to look up.

The timely film was nominated for an Oscar four times and received rave reviews from critics. As a committed environmentalist, DiCaprio noted that people stubbornly ignore the issues that could lead to humanity's extinction.

'Don't Look Up' is 'an analogy of contemporary culture and our inability to hear and heed scientific truth.'

In 2022, Leonardo ranked third on the list of highest-paid actors. He earned this position thanks to a 30-million-dollar fee for the thriller "Killers of the Flower Moon," where he starred alongside Robert De Niro.

Environmental Advocate

Leonardo DiCaprio consistently brings environmental issues to the public's attention. He is the founder of the non-profit Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation and its main sponsor, having donated over $30 million to conservation projects in 40 countries worldwide.

In 2007, he even released the documentary "The 11th Hour" and was involved in the production of "Before the Flood" in 2016, both dedicated to climate change. The United Nations appointed him as a Messenger of Peace in 2014 for his contributions to environmental preservation.

Leonardo DiCaprio accuses oil companies of greed

Leonardo owns a small island in the Caribbean, which he bought in 2008, and he is now working on restoring the coastline that was damaged by fishing activities. Leonardo is building a resort of the future that will be completely harmless to the island's ecology.

In 2008, Leonardo DiCaprio bought an island in the Caribbean

Besides, DiCaprio invests in the company Love The Wild, promoting sustainable aquaculture.

The actor has an Instagram account, but unlike most of his colleagues, he doesn't post personal photos at all. Each post is a call to action for his more than 36 million followers to treat our planet and its inhabitants with care.

Leonardo DiCaprio's Personal Life

Leo is already a mature man, but he has never been married. His personal life can be described as "still actively searching".

At the dawn of his career, the handsome actor changed girlfriends frequently: he dated Claire Danes in 1996, was with Kristen Zang from 1996 to 1997, and was with Demi Moore from 1997 to 2002.

His relationship with Brazilian model Gisele Bündchen lasted for quite some time; they were together from 1999 to 2005. Their six-year romance ended due to the model's psychological issues (Gisele suffered from panic attacks), and DiCaprio continued his bachelor life.

In 2006, he met Israeli model Bar Refaeli. The couple dated for 3 years and it seemed they were heading towards marriage, but they finally split in 2011. After that, he had a brief fling with actress Blake Lively.

Gisele was only 6 years younger than Leo, Bar was 11 years his junior. Now, he dates women who are half his age. His girlfriends change frequently, never staying long. A stereotype of the actor's preferences has emerged – a tall, leggy blonde who is a model. In 2014, German model Toni Garrn was rumored to be his future wife, and in 2016, actress and runway star Kelly Rohrbach was speculated to be the one.

In the summer of 2018, paparazzi spotted him vacationing in Italy with Al Pacino's stepdaughter, actress Camila Morrone, known for the film "Death Wish" where she formed a great duo with Bruce Willis and received positive reviews from critics. His relationship with Camila lasted until 2022. Insiders reported that the breakup was initiated by Morrone: she disliked that Leonardo made her settle down and put her career on the back burner, which she firmly did not want.

After that, th actor had a romance with model Gigi Hadid, and he was seen in the company of models Megan Rossee, Neelam Gill, Josie Redmond, Maya Jama, and Victoria Lamas.

All the girlfriends in the Leonardo DiCaprio «under 25 club» as he dumps Camila Morrone

Leonardo DiCaprio does not have children. As early as 2010, he claimed he was ready for fatherhood, but it seems he has yet to find the woman he would like to make the mother of his children.

Leonardo DiCaprio Now

The crime drama "Killers of the Flower Moon" starring DiCaprio premiered in May 2023. The film received 10 Oscar nominations, however, DiCaprio was not nominated. For his role as Ernest Burkhart, the actor was nominated for a Golden Globe, but the award went to Cillian Murphy for his role in Nolan's "Oppenheimer".

Leonardo DiCaprio and Lily Gladstone talk Killers of the Flower Moon

Leonardo DiCaprio: latest news and articles

William Rivera

Well, Leonardo already got his Oscar :) In the movie The Great Gatsby, he played very coolly!

2021-04-19 21:35:33
Natalie Martin

Despite DiCaprio`s pretty appearance, as an actor he is amazing! Although, I never hear something bad about him.

2021-04-18 22:32:13
Wanda Schultz

I remember how excited I was about Shutter Island! For me, it`s his strongest role.

2021-03-15 16:57:57
Joseph Williams

This actor finally got his distinguished Oscar, they needed to give him a long time ago already.

2021-02-24 16:21:19
Linda Adams

DiCaprio is in the hearts of many girls from the release of Titanic :)

2021-02-24 11:48:26