Leonardo DiCaprio’s “favourite actor of all time”
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The “most memorable moment” of Leonardo DiCaprio’s career
Leonardo DiCaprio’s career has seemingly been a series of triumphant events, and the Oscar-winner achieved everything he wished when he began his acting journey. DiCaprio has had the honour to star alongside almost every one of his heroes, including Jack Nicholson, which was an unforgettable experience.
Since 2003, Nicholson has essentially been retired from Hollywood, and DiCaprio likely believed his chance to work alongside him had dissipated. However, the actor never officially announced his retirement, and when Martin Scorcese contacted him with an offer to star in The Departed, Nicholson was back in the game.
At this stage, DiCaprio had already ticked off working alongside an array of his idols and getting to star alongside Nicholson was an experience that didn’t disappoint. The pair starred alongside Matt Damon and Mark Wahlberg in the film about the real-life Winter Hill Gang in Boston.
Although Nicholson wasn’t around for the entirety of the filming process, and they shifted filming to suit his schedule, the moments they shared were unforgettable for DiCaprio.
Nicholson plays Irish mob boss Costello in the Oscar-winning 2006 production, and it was a role he was born to play. He also brought a sense of unpredictability to the set, and at one point, Nicholson pulled a real gun on DiCaprio, which added authenticity to the scene. Scorsese didn’t even know he planned on doing this, and the experience was “intense” for DiCaprio.
“There were a number of different scenes where I had no idea what was going to happen,” DiCaprio said during a press conference ahead of the film’s release. “One scene in particular… I remember Jack speaking to Marty because he said he didn’t feel that he was intimidating enough.”
DiCaprio continued: “It was one of the table scenes. It was one of the most memorable moments of my life as far as being an actor is concerned. Jack [Nicholson] had a short run, he filmed his scenes and then he left, but those were some of the most intense moments of the film for me certainly.”
Although Nicholson was a livewire on set, and DiCaprio couldn’t guess his next move, he had nothing but gratuities to say about the time he spent in his company. He added, “As a human being, as a person, there were some memories that I will never forget”.
Nicholson’s decision to come out of retirement for The Departed was inspired. At the Oscars, the film won four awards, including the prize of the night, ‘Best Picture’, and Scorsese also won his only ‘Best Director’ award. Astonishingly, DiCaprio was staggeringly snubbed over a nomination, despite his stellar performance, but he did get to learn from the best in the business.
