Editing Leonardo DiCaprio (section)

==={{Anchor|Leo-mania}}1997–2001: ''Titanic'' and worldwide recognition===
{{hatnote|"Leo-mania" redirects here.}}
DiCaprio rejected a role in ''[[Boogie Nights]]'' (1997) to star opposite [[Kate Winslet]] in [[James Cameron]]'s ''[[Titanic (1997 film)|Titanic]]'' as members of different social classes who fall in love aboard [[Titanic|RMS ''Titanic'']] during its ill-fated maiden voyage.{{sfn|Wight|2012|p=8}} DiCaprio initially had doubts, but was eventually encouraged by Cameron to pursue the part.<ref name="www.ew.com">{{cite magazine |title=''Titanic'' |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=January 24, 2010 |date=November 7, 1997 |url=https://www.ew.com/article/1997/11/07/titanic |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100328230602/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,290182_3,00.html |archive-date=March 28, 2010|page=3}}</ref> With a production budget of more than $200&nbsp;million,{{sfn|Block|Wilson|2010|p=714}}<ref>{{Cite web |last=Thompson |first=Eliza |date=January 2, 2024 |title=Here's How Leo's 'Titanic' Payday Stacked Up to Kate's |url=https://parade.com/celebrities/leonardo-dicaprio-net-worth |access-date=January 8, 2024 |website=Parade |language=en}}</ref> the film was the most expensive in history at the time, and was shot at [[Rosarito, Baja California]] where a replica of the ship was created.<ref>{{cite magazine |last1=Torres |first1=Gaby |title=The Town That Built the ''Titanic'' is Sinking |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/the-town-that-built-the-titanic-is-sinking-0000187-v19n4/ |access-date=March 2, 2022 |magazine=[[Vice (magazine)|Vice]] |date=May 4, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191009180631/https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/kwn3be/the-town-that-built-the-titanic-is-sinking-0000187-v19n4 |archive-date=October 9, 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> ''Titanic'' became the highest-grossing film at the time, eventually earning more than $2.1&nbsp;billion in box-office receipts worldwide.{{efn|''Titanic'' grossed $1.84&nbsp;billion at the time of its release. After a re-release in [[3D film|3D]] in 2012, it earned an additional $343.6&nbsp;million worldwide, totaling up to $2.18&nbsp;billion.<ref>{{cite web |title=''Titanic'' (1997) |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120338/ |publisher=[[Box Office Mojo]] |access-date=April 11, 2022 |archive-date=October 27, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191027003338/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120338/ |url-status=live}}<br>Click on the drop-down menu to see the gross at the time of its original release and 3D re-release.</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Klady |first1=Leonard |title=''Titanic'' Sails to All-Time Box Office Record |url=https://variety.com/1998/film/news/titanic-sails-to-all-time-box-office-record-1201345048/ |access-date=April 11, 2022 |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=March 3, 1998 |archive-date=February 16, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160216041131/http://variety.com/1998/film/news/titanic-sails-to-all-time-box-office-record-1201345048/ |url-status=live}}</ref>}} The role of Jack Dawson transformed DiCaprio into a superstar, resulting in intense adoration among teenage girls and young women that became known as "Leo-mania".<ref>{{cite news |first=John |last=Hiscock |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3632803/Leonardo-DiCaprios-magnificent-obsessive.html |title=Leonardo DiCaprio's Magnificent Obsessive |work=[[The Daily Telegraph]] |date=December 4, 2004 |access-date=August 3, 2010 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101223094145/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/film/3632803/Leonardo-DiCaprios-magnificent-obsessive.html |archive-date=December 23, 2010}}</ref>{{sfn|Nash|Lahti|1999|pp=74–83}} The film won 11&nbsp;[[Academy Awards]]—the most wins for any film—including [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]], but DiCaprio's failure to gain a nomination led to a protest against the [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] (AMPAS) by more than 200{{nbsp}}fans.<ref>{{cite news |first=Jason |last=Davis |title=Love Story That Won the Heart of the Academy |work=[[BBC News]] |access-date=October 8, 2019 |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/special_report/1998/03/98/oscars/69009.stm |date=March 24, 1998 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080308052908/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/special_report/1998/03/98/oscars/69009.stm |archive-date=March 8, 2008}}</ref><ref name="busch19980306">{{cite magazine |url=https://www.ew.com/article/1998/03/06/leonardo-dicaprio-robbed-titanic-nomination |title=Leonardo DiCaprio: Robbed of a ''Titanic'' Nomination? |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |date=March 6, 1998 |access-date=November 23, 2013 |last=Busch |first=Anita M. |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150715193552/http://www.ew.com/article/1998/03/06/leonardo-dicaprio-robbed-titanic-nomination |archive-date=July 15, 2015}}</ref> He was nominated for other high-profile awards, including a [[Golden Globe Award for Best Actor&nbsp;– Motion Picture Drama|Golden Globe Award for Best Actor]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/titanic|title=Golden Globe Awards: Titanic|access-date=July 30, 2023|publisher=[[Hollywood Foreign Press Association]]|archive-date=December 1, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201201154636/https://www.goldenglobes.com/film/titanic|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[File:Leonardo DiCaprio.jpeg|thumb|left|upright|DiCaprio at a press conference for ''[[The Beach (film)|The Beach]]'' in 2000|alt=A photograph of Leonardo DiCaprio attending a press conference for The Beach.]]

DiCaprio stated in 2000: "I have no connection with me during that whole ''Titanic'' phenomenon and what my face became around the world{{nbsp}}[...] I'll never reach that state of popularity again, and I don't expect to{{nbsp}}[...] It's not something I'm going to try to achieve either."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,2055068,00.html |title=What's Eating Leonardo DiCaprio |magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] |date=February 14, 2000 |access-date=January 13, 2009 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140122003256/http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0%2C8599%2C2055068%2C00.html |archive-date=January 22, 2014}}</ref> In his 2015 ''Rolling Stone'' article, Ebiri called the role DiCaprio's best, writing that he and Winslet "infuse their earnest back-and-forth with so much genuine emotion that it's hard not to get swept up in their doomed love affair."<ref name="rollingstone" /> A writer for ''[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]'' in 2008 similarly labeled them "Hollywood's most iconic screen couple" since [[Humphrey Bogart]] and [[Ingrid Bergman]].<ref name="deneuvely">{{cite news |last = Smith |first = Krista |title = Isn't she Deneuvely? |url = https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2008/12/winslet200812 |work = [[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]] |date = November 3, 2008 |access-date = August 23, 2021 |url-status=live |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170103220131/http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2008/12/winslet200812 |archive-date = January 3, 2017}}</ref> Essaying her first viewing of the film in 2017, ''[[Vox (website)|Vox]]'' contributor Alissa Wilkinson took note of DiCaprio's "boyish charm" and found his performance "natural and unaffected".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Wilkinson |first1=Alissa |title='''Titanic'' is turning 20, and I just saw it for the first time. It blew my mind.' |url=https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/12/19/16774172/titanic-20th-anniversary-1997-dicaprio-cameron-winslet |website=[[Vox (website)|Vox]] |access-date=February 2, 2022 |date=December 19, 2017 |archive-date=February 2, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202163123/https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/12/19/16774172/titanic-20th-anniversary-1997-dicaprio-cameron-winslet |url-status=live}}</ref> The success of ''Titanic'' intensified DiCaprio's standing as a [[teen idol]] and romantic lead, an image from which he sought to dissociate himself.{{sfn|Nash|Lahti|1999|pp=74–83}} He reduced his workload "to learn to hear [his] own voice in choosing the roles" that he wanted to pursue.<ref>{{cite news|author=Rose, Tiffany |date=January 5, 2003 |title=Leonardo DiCaprio: The Q Interview |work=The Independent |url-access=limited|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/leonardo-dicaprio-the-q-interview-138084.html |url-status=live |access-date=January 8, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220108183449/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/films/features/leonardo-dicaprio-the-q-interview-138084.html |archive-date=January 8, 2022}}</ref>

DiCaprio had a brief featured role in [[Woody Allen]]'s 1998 satire of fame, ''[[Celebrity (1998 film)|Celebrity]]''. Ebiri labeled DiCaprio "the best thing in the film".<ref name="rollingstone" /><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/celebrity-1998 |title=''Celebrity'' Movie Review & Film Summary |website=RogerEbert.com |last=Ebert |first=Roger |author-link=Roger Ebert |date=November 20, 1998 |access-date=October 8, 2019 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006093643/http://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/celebrity-1998 |archive-date=October 6, 2014}}</ref> That year, he also took on the dual roles of villainous [[King Louis XIV]] and his secret, sympathetic twin brother Philippe in [[Randall Wallace]]'s ''[[The Man in the Iron Mask (1998 film)|The Man in the Iron Mask]]'', with common elements from [[The Man in the Iron Mask (1939 film)|the 1939 film]] of the same name and a [[The Iron Mask (1929 film)|1929 film]] with [[Douglas Fairbanks]].<ref>{{cite news |title=''The Man in the Iron Mask'' |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/united-artists/the-man-in-the-iron-mask-788922.html |access-date=April 11, 2022 |work=The Independent |date=February 28, 2008 |url-access=limited |archive-date=April 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220411162739/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/united-artists/the-man-in-the-iron-mask-788922.html |url-status=live}}</ref> It received mixed to negative reviews,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1082400-man_in_the_iron_mask/ |title=''The Man in the Iron Mask'' |date=March 13, 1998 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100726030327/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1082400-man_in_the_iron_mask/ |archive-date=July 26, 2010 |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=May 8, 2010}}</ref> but grossed $180&nbsp;million against a budget of $35&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite web |title=''The Man in the Iron Mask'' (1998) |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120744/ |publisher=Box Office Mojo |access-date=April 11, 2022 |archive-date=April 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220411163232/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120744/ |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Man-in-the-Iron-Mask |title=''The Man in the Iron Mask'' (1998) |publisher=The Numbers |access-date=July 13, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129043250/http://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Man-in-the-Iron-Mask |archive-date=November 29, 2014}}</ref> ''Entertainment Weekly'' critic [[Owen Gleiberman]] wrote that DiCaprio did not look old enough to play the part, but praised him as "a fluid and instinctive actor, with the face of a mischievous angel".<ref>{{cite magazine |first=Owen |last=Gleiberman |author-link=Owen Gleiberman |date=March 12, 1998 |url=https://www.ew.com/article/1998/03/20/man-iron-mask |title=''The Man in the Iron Mask'' (1998) |magazine=Entertainment Weekly |access-date=July 13, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151003185530/http://www.ew.com/article/1998/03/20/man-iron-mask |archive-date=October 3, 2015}}</ref> ''The Guardian''{{'s}} Alex von Tunzelmann was similarly impressed with the actor's performance but found his talent wasted in the film.<ref>{{cite news |last1=von Tunzelmann |first1=Alex |title=''The Man in the Iron Mask'': Uncovered |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/21/reel-history-man-in-the-iron-mask |access-date=February 2, 2022 |work=The Guardian |date=October 21, 2010 |archive-date=February 2, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202163123/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2010/oct/21/reel-history-man-in-the-iron-mask |url-status=live}}</ref> DiCaprio won a [[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Screen Couple]] for the dual roles in 1999.<ref>{{cite news |title=''The Man in the Mask'' (1998) – Leonardo DiCaprio: His Career in Pictures |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturepicturegalleries/11121170/Leonardo-DiCaprio-in-pictures.html?frame=3051418|date=February 22, 2016 |access-date=September 4, 2015 |work=The Daily Telegraph |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150410070155/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/culturepicturegalleries/11121170/Leonardo-DiCaprio-in-pictures.html?frame=3051418 |archive-date=April 10, 2015|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

Also in 1998, DiCaprio was cast to star in ''[[American Psycho (film)|American Psycho]]'' (2000) for a reported salary of $20&nbsp;million; after disagreements with [[Oliver Stone]] on the film's direction, DiCaprio left the project, taking the lead role in ''[[The Beach (film)|The Beach]]'' instead.<ref>{{cite news|last=Gopalan|first=Nisha |title=''American Psycho'': the Story Behind the Film |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2000/mar/24/fiction.breteastonellis |access-date=October 8, 2019 |work=The Guardian |date=March 24, 2000 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190327091451/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2000/mar/24/fiction.breteastonellis |archive-date=March 27, 2019|url-status=live}}</ref> Adapted from [[Alex Garland]]'s [[The Beach (novel)|1996 novel]], the film saw him play a backpacking American tourist who ends up in a secret island commune in the [[Gulf of Thailand]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Niven |first1=John |title=Alex Garland's cult novel ''The Beach'' 20 Years On
|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/jul/02/alex-garland-the-beach-20-years-on |access-date=April 11, 2022 |newspaper=The Guardian |date=July 2, 2016 |archive-date=April 11, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220411033444/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/jul/02/alex-garland-the-beach-20-years-on |url-status=live}}</ref> Budgeted at $50&nbsp;million, the film earned almost three times that at the box office,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Beach-The#tab=summary |title=''The Beach'' (2000) |publisher=The Numbers |access-date=August 3, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140314065104/http://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Beach-The |archive-date=March 14, 2014}}</ref> but was negatively reviewed by critics, and earned him a nomination for the [[Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Actor]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/beach/ |title=''The Beach'' (2000) |date=February 11, 2000 |publisher=Rotten Tomatoes |access-date=August 27, 2008 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080831055742/http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/beach/ |archive-date=August 31, 2008}}</ref><ref name="raspberry">{{cite web |last=Wilson |first=John |url=http://razzies.com/asp/content/xcnewsplus.asp?cmd=view&articleid=43 |title=Nominations Press Release |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304191431/http://razzies.com/asp/content/xcnewsplus.asp?cmd=view&articleid=43 |archive-date=March 4, 2016 |access-date=October 8, 2019 |publisher=[[Golden Raspberry Awards]] |date=February 12, 2001 |url-status=dead}}</ref> [[Todd McCarthy]] of ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' thought DiCaprio gave a compelling performance but his character lacked defining qualities.<ref>{{cite news |first=Todd |last=McCarthy |author-link=Todd McCarthy|url=https://variety.com/2000/film/reviews/the-beach-1117778650/ |title=''The Beach'' Review |work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=February 7, 2000 |access-date=August 3, 2010 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140906160235/https://variety.com/2000/film/reviews/the-beach-1117778650/ |archive-date=September 6, 2014}}</ref> The film received criticism for damaging the filming location in Thailand, after which DiCaprio worked to restore the area.{{sfn|Erdős|2019|p=218}}

In the mid-1990s, DiCaprio agreed to be in the mostly improvised black-and-white short film ''[[Don's Plum]]'' as a favor to aspiring director [[R. D. Robb]].<ref name="pp1" /> When Robb expanded it to a full-length film, DiCaprio and co-star [[Tobey Maguire]] had its release blocked in the US and Canada by court order, arguing they never intended to make a feature film. The film premiered at the [[Berlin International Film Festival|2001 Berlin International Film Festival]] but remains obscure.<ref>{{cite magazine |author=Lee, Chris|title=Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, and the Making and Epic Unmaking of ''Don's Plum'' |url=https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/12/leonardo-dicaprio-tobey-maguire-dons-plum |access-date=April 11, 2022 |magazine=Vanity Fair |date=December 12, 2016 |archive-date=December 15, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161215101928/https://www.vanityfair.com/hollywood/2016/12/leonardo-dicaprio-tobey-maguire-dons-plum |url-status=live}}</ref>