5.CATCH ME IF YOU CAN
In this real-life crime film directed by Steven Spielberg, DiCaprio portrays young con-man Frank Abagnale, Jr. who, by the time he turned 19, had swindled his way into millions of dollars. Posing as various people (including a Pan Am airline pilot), Frank Jr. conducted an elaborate check fraud scheme, which came to the attention of FBI agent Carl Hanratty (Tom Hanks). The two pursue each other in a cat-and-mouse game that is just delightful. For his performance as Frank Jr., DiCaprio earned his third nomination for a Golden Globe Award.
6.TITANIC
DiCaprio went from respected actor to worldwide movie star in the James Cameron‘s phenomenal hit, the second highest-grossing film of all time. DiCaprio manages the tricky feat of being convincing as Jack Dawson, a penniless stowaway to passing as a first-class passenger complete with formal wear. And his romantic chemistry with Kate Winslet is one for the record books. For his performance as Frank, DiCaprio earned his second nomination for a Golden Globe Award and, as a member of the film’s ensemble, garnered his second nomination for a Screen Actors Guild Award.
7.THE WOLF OF WALL STREET
Working once again with Martin Scorsese, DiCaprio won his second Golden Globe Award for his performance as the real-life stockbroker Jordan Belfort, whose underhanded and fraudulent practices made him a small fortune which he spent on a decadent lifestyle of sex and drugs. After a career filled with a number of interior-based performances, it was fun to see DiCaprio let loose on screen. The film also earned DiCaprio’s fourth and fifth Academy Award nominations for Best Actor and producing the Best Picture nominee.
8.THE REVENANT
DiCaprio won his first Academy Award, his third Golden Globe Award and his first Screen Actors Guild Award for his performance in Alejandro G. Iñárritu‘s film as Hugh Glass, a frontier guide in 1823, who is left for dead by a group of trappers after he is mauled by a grizzly bear. Miraculously, Hugh survives and swears vengeance on the men who abandoned him. Hugh is an enormously physical role while at the same time giving DiCaprio enough room to offer some powerful character work. A much-deserved win.
