32 Years After They Starred Together In “This Boy’s Life,” Leonardo DiCaprio Credited Robert De Niro For Changing His Life “Forever”
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It’s truthful uncommon we get to perceive Leo speech similar this…
In 1993, Leonardo DiCaprio starred alongside Robert De Niro successful This Boy’s Life. Leo was astir 17 and comparatively chartless astatine the time, portion his older costar was already an Academy Award-winning icon. But, arsenic I’m definite you know, things coiled up moving retired beauteous good for the young star…
Flash guardant to 2025, and Leo was enlisted to contiguous his erstwhile costar with an honorary Palme d'Or — 1 of the astir prestigious awards successful each of movie — astatine the Cannes Film Festival, which kicked disconnected this week.
In his speech, Leo recalled his archetypal interactions with Robert during his “tough” audition for This Boy’s Life arsenic a teen. “There's tons of competition. None of america knew who would get the part,” helium recalled. “And astatine 15 oregon 16 years old, I did the lone happening I could deliberation to basal out: I screamed astatine him astatine the apical of my lungs. The country burst into laughter. Later that day, arsenic the communicative goes, Bob was getting connected his level with a producer, [who] asked, ‘Who bash you privation to play the part?’ And successful classical De Niro fashion, helium replied, ‘Second kid from the last.’”
As destiny would person it, that 2nd kid from the past was Leo. “That infinitesimal changed my beingness forever, started my full vocation successful the satellite of cinema,” the now-50-year-old histrion reflected.
One happening Leo and Robert stock successful communal is their adjacent idiosyncratic and nonrecreational relationships with the large Martin Scorsese. In 2023, the trio collaborated connected Killers of the Flower Moon, which marked Leo’s sixth Scorsese movie and Robert’s tenth. In his speech, the Wolf of Wall Street prima thanked Robert for introducing him to the iconic manager and credited the duo for redefining “what cinema could be” done their beloved films similar Taxi Driver, Raging Bull, and Goodfellas.
On apical of their Scorsese collabs, different happening the 2 Oscar-winning actors attack likewise is fame, some surviving notoriously backstage lives distant from their acting careers. Hilariously, Leo acknowledged this successful his speech, joking that “he’s not idiosyncratic who peculiarly enjoys being successful the spotlight disconnected camera.”
“If I’m lucky, I’ll get a motion from him tonight, possibly adjacent a fractional smile. And I would instrumentality that arsenic a lasting ovation. And each erstwhile successful a while, adjacent the astir backstage giants deserves their moment, a infinitesimal to beryllium acknowledged, not conscionable for their work, but for the quiescent lasting power they’ve had connected truthful galore lives,” helium said, wrapping up his speech. “So, without trying to talk for the full satellite of cinema present tonight, but astir apt doing it anyway, determination is nary 1 much deserving of this Palm d’Or beingness accomplishment grant than Mr. Robert De Niro.”