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Somebody who has concern for the
people around him and who is gracious.
Good men are thoughtful and intelligent,
have dignity and show courtesy to others,
who don’t always think about themselves.
They are open to sharing their thoughts
and ideas with the people around them.
They are generous.
I heard scuba diving is
now one of your passions.
I love diving. It’s one of my favorite things
to do in life. I’ve been to a lot of different
places around the world, sought out
different coral reefs and species. It’s
a whole new experience when
you’re down there. You really
disconnect and you’re almost in a
dream world. It’s like somebody
made it up in cartoon or in
CGI. Sometimes, it’s that
beautiful.
Which other
times are
you most
comfortable?
When I’m in the
woods, away from
civilization.
How do you
escape from
it all on a daily
basis?
In the shower.
What ,
s your
favorite comfort
food?
Italian food. Pasta is my favorite even
though everyone is not eating carbs
nowadays [laughs].
After doing three
films back to back,
do you plan to
take it easy this
year?
I do want to dedicate a lot
this year, and not only to
take some time to reflect on
everything but to get back to doing more
environmental work. I already have a
few things lined up that are going to be
very important things for me and my
foundation. I plan on traveling and getting
more involved with those environmental
issues. That’s a big goal of mine this year
in addition to getting some rest, seeing my
friends again and being home.
EVOKING OLD HOLLYWOOD
glamour
with his slicked back hair and dark suit,
Leonardo, occasionally flashing that killer
smile that lights up his eyes as well, talks
about the three films that kept him busy
these past two years. He plays a villainous
plantation owner in Quentin Tarantino’s
Django Unchained
.
He’s also part of Baz
Luhrmann’s
The Great Gatsby
,
which
reunites him with old pal Tobey Maguire;
while Martin Scorsese’s
The Wolf of
Wall Street
,
sees him portraying real-life
convicted fraudster Jordan Belfort.
Talk about your two films
coming up this year.
Let
,
s start with
The Great
Gatsby
.
I worked and collaborated again with
Baz Luhrmann, our first since
Romeo
+ Juliet
.
He’s my great friend, a
great visionary. We started in
Australia a year
and a half
ago. That was
after years of
conversation
about whether to do
Gatsby
–
do we finally take on this
great American novel and
embark on this journey with
Baz? And I’ve been wanting
to work again with my great
friend Tobey Maguire since
we started off on our little
adventure doing
This Boy’s
Life
when we were 16. We both
auditioned for that title role. It was
great to work again with Tobey. I
couldn’t pass up that opportunity.
And what about
The Wolf of Wall
Street
?
I’ve been trying to make this
movie happen for five years
now. Marty (Scorsese) was
attached to the film at one
point. Two or three other
directors came on board but
I vigilantly wanted Marty to
do this movie. The only way
it was going to happen was if I go straight
from Australia (
Gatsby
location), take a
week or two off, fly to New Orleans (to
shoot
Django Unchained
)
and then do
The Wolf
…
I said, “Let’s do it!” So I did
three movies in a row. Usually, I like to
have more time in between films to think
about them. But doing one movie after
another has given me a lot of newfound
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GETTY IMAGES
energy. It’s interesting because once you
get into that mode of constantly working
and focusing, it becomes like a basketball
season – you’re just constantly playing.
You have no time to stop or reflect. You
just go, go, go go! It’s amazing. It keeps
you in good acting shape.
What was it like working
with Franco Nero in
Django Unchained
?
He
,
s
an iconic part of the
Spaghetti Western
genre.
Franco Nero is such a charming, great
guy. He’s a good man, too. I had a long
conversation with him about his work
in Italy. He has an orphanage where he
takes care of children and adopts them.
He’s an amazing man.
Speaking of, what
,
s your
definition of a good man?
DiCaprio in Quentin Tarantino’s
Django Unchained
“
I like to have more time in
between films to think about
them. But doing one movie
after another has given me a
lot of newfound energy”
