The one actor who left Leonardo DiCaprio awestruck: “Nothing short of transformative”
The friendship between Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio is perhaps the most consistent and heart-warming relationship in Hollywood, with the pair meeting as co-stars in Titanic, James Cameron’s global blockbuster in 1997. Since then, the actors remained as fierce friends and even reunited on screen in 2008 for Sam Mendes’ Revolutionary Road. Throughout their careers, they have continually praised and highlighted each other’s work, and after a recent screening, DiCaprio made a moving speech about his lasting love and admiration for the actor and her recent work with Ellen Kuras.
Winslet’s career has spanned from the dizzying heights of record-breaking blockbusters such as Avatar and Titanic, to incomparable independent films like Eternal of the Spotless Mind and period dramas like Sense and Sensibility. But while she’s largely recognised for these roles, she’s also been praised for championing women in the industry and challenging the stereotypes around femininity and celebrity status. Winslet has endured horrific harassment from the press and media over the years, with endless scrutiny over her appearance that has led her to be very vocal about the pressure for women in the public eye to look a certain way, expressing concern and outrage over the unrealistic standards.
This is something that has carried into her work, with Winslet famously speaking about how she was encouraged to photoshop footage of herself during a love scene in Mare of Easttown, to which she refused because she wanted people to see a realistic and natural portrayal of a woman that age. In her most recent film, Lee, the message of authenticity is something that carries through, with the story following a fashion photographer who becomes a war correspondent during World War 2.
The idea of challenging common stereotypes about women and their stories on screen is something that Winslet has always remained passionate about; focused on playing nuanced, gritty and complicated women that appeal to a wider audience of people who don’t typically see themselves on screen. The Hollywood curse has typically banished women ‘over a certain age’ from any substantial roles, reduced to playing hags, witches, and old wives after the age of 35.
During the Los Angeles premiere of Lee, DiCaprio had endless praise for Winslet and the power of the character that she brought to life, saying, “Kate, my dear friend, your work in this film has been nothing short of transformative. I continue to be awestruck, I continue to admire your strength, your integrity, your talent and your passion in every single project you create.”
The transformative power that DiCaprio no doubt comes from Winslet stepping into a typically male-dominated space and realm of storytelling and breathing new life into it. War films as a genre tend to be very male-focused, with their stories on the battlefield being prioritised over the stories of everyone else, and through her role in Lee, Winslet challenges the ideas we have about strength and femininity by bringing these values into a conventionally masculine space.
Winslet only continues to flourish and thrive with each new performance, and her friendship with DiCaprio brings a much need lightness and sense of camaraderie to an otherwise competitive industry that rarely sees a relationship as uplifting and supportive.
