biography of Leonardo DiCaprio

 

Synopsis

Born on November 11, 1974, in Los Angeles, California, Leonardo DiCaprio is an American actor known for his good looks and edgy, unconventional roles. DiCaprio started out in television in the early 1990s. This Boy's Life (1993) with Robert De Niro was his first major film role. In 1997, DiCaprio starred James Cameron's epic drama Titanic,

which made him a huge star. He has worked with such film greats as Martin Scorsese and Clint Eastwood. Some of his most recent films include Inception (2011) and Django Unchained (2012).

Early Life

Born on November 11, 1974, in Los Angeles, California, Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio is the only child of Irmelin and George DiCaprio. His parents divorced when he was still a toddler. DiCaprio was mostly raised by his mother, a legal secretary born in Germany.
Despite his parents' early divorce, Leonardo DiCaprio remained close to his father, a comic book artist and distributor. With his parents urging Leonardo explored his creative side. He developed an interest in acting early on. "I loved imitating people ... I loved joking around with my parents and creating different characters. I liked doing my own little homemade skits," DiCaprio told Back Stage. But he didn't have much success in Hollywood until he reached his early teens.

From Television to Film

For years, DiCaprio had trouble landing an agent. One agent event recommended DiCaprio change his name to Lenny Williams to improve his appeal. By the early 1990s, however, DiCaprio began landing regular television work. His early credits included guest appearances on such programs as The New Lassie and Roseanne. He landed a role on the dramatic comedy Parenthood. While the show proved to short lived, DiCaprio reportedly met fellow actor Tobey Maguire while making the series. The two have remained good friends ever since.
In 1991, DiCaprio took a leap forward when he was cast as a semi-regular on the family comedy Growing Pains with Kirk Cameron and Alan Thicke. He made his film debut in the low-budget horror flick Critters 3 that same year. But DiCaprio really first demonstrated his talents as a serious actor two years later. Proving to the critics that he was more than a just good-looking teenager, DiCaprio starred opposite Robert De Niro in This Boy's Life. The film delved into the difficult relationship between a young boy and his abusive stepfather in this adaptation of Tobias Wolff's memoir. DiCaprio impressed critics, holding his own on screen up against acting heavyweight De Niro.
DiCaprio turned heads again with his performance in What's Eating Gilbert Grape? (1993) with Johnny Depp. His portrayal of a child with mental disabilities earned him an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor. The accolades he received from this film solidified DiCaprio's reputation as a gifted actor.
After receiving his first Academy Award nomination, DiCaprio continued to pursue interesting and diverse film projects. He starred in the 1995 coming-of-age drama The Basketball Diaries and worked with Russell Crowe, Sharon Stone and Gene Hackman on the western The Quick and the Dead that same year.