While it seemed like there would never be another young actor that would serve as the leading man of his generation the same way that Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Jack Nicholson did during the early stages of their careers,Leonardo DiCapriohas continuously proven to be up to the task. Although DiCaprio’s early roles in the 1990s suggested he was just another “Hollywood heartthrob,” it was evident early on that he had much greater ambitions. After receiving his first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor inWhat’s Eating Gilbert Grape, DiCaprio continued to work with some of the industry’s strongest filmmakers and appeared in some of the bestfilms of the 21st Century. He later received nominations forThe Aviator, Blood Diamond,andThe Wolf of Wall Street, but came home empty-handed each time.
While it took far too long for DiCaprio to win the trophy that he so obviously deserved, he finally brought home the Oscar for Best Actor for his unflinchingly committed role in Alejandro Gonzales Inarritu’sThe Revenant. It was a unique victory; while obviously DiCaprio was overdue for recognition and had clearly deserved the prize much earlier within his year, few detractors would argue that his performance inThe Revenantwas anything less than remarkable. DiCaprio’s career is packed with incredible work, some of which didn’t even get recognized by theOscarswith a nomination. Here are the 10 best Leonardo DiCaprio performances that didn’t get Oscar nominations, ranked.
10This Boy’s Life
While his role inWhat’s Eating Gilbert Grapewas impressive, considering how young DiCaprio was at the time, he was even younger when he starred as the impoverished teenager Toby Wolff in the searing biographical filmThis Boy’s Life. A tragic look at life within an abusive household,This Boy’s Lifeallowed DiCaprio to share scenes with De Niro, who played the terrifying role of his adopted father.
Related:Best Leonardo DiCaprio Movies, Ranked
While Clint Eastwood’s attempt to tell a more complete story of the infamous FBI leader’s life suffered from some uneven plotting and confusing narrative choices, DiCaprio’s fiercely committed performance is reason enough to check outJ. Edgar. It’s one thing for an actor to nail a role in a great movie, but withJ. Edgar, DiCaprio truly elevated a mediocre one.
Titanicties the record of having the most Oscar wins in history withBen-HurandThe Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, as they all have 11 wins. Even though the Academy clearly adoredTitanic, they didn’t make room for DiCaprio’s undeniably charismatic performance as Jack Dawson. It was the central romance ofTitanicbetween DiCaprio and Kate Winslet that caught the hearts of an entire generation of moviegoers.
7William Shakespeare’s Romeo + Juliet
Many actors have taken home trophies for playing William Shakespeare’s most beloved characters, but Baz Luhrmann’s wild modern adaptation ofWilliam Shakespeare’s Romeo + Julietwasn’t a traditional translation in the slightest. Taking the classic story and putting it within the context of modern California, Luhrmann nonetheless committed to the romance and tragedy that had stood the test of time by allowing DiCaprio to breathe new life into Romeo.
Related:Baz Luhrmann’s Best Movies, Ranked
6The Basketball Diaries
One of DiCaprio’s most criminally underseen performances inThe Basketball Diariesis also one of his best. In this biopic of the future poet Jim Carroll during his traumatic adolescence, DiCaprio shows how Carroll gets roped into drug addiction and must fight to get himself clean and have a more promising future.
5Shutter Island
Despite being recognized for other collaborations with thegreat Martin Scoresese, DiCaprio was shut out of the Best Actor race for his performance inShutter Island. While the Oscars rarely recognize horror films in the major races, DiCaprio clearly should have gotten in for his terrifying, yet heartbreaking performance as a mentally disturbed man who’s been living in his own reality for far too long.
4Revolutionary Road
Teaming up with Winslet for the first time sinceTitanic, DiCaprio took on the role of the ambitious young businessman Frank Wheeler in Sam Mendes’ marital dramaRevolutionary Road. His romance with Winslet, who co-stars as Frank’s wife April, is heartbreaking in a much different way than the tragic end ofTitanic; Frank and Aprils’ idealism depletes as they conform to being “average people” in the 1950s suburbs.
3Catch Me If You Can
DiCaprio is so often cast as darker, brooding anti-heroes that it’s easy to forget how funny he can be. He gives one of the most entertaining performances of his career as Frank Abagnale, Jr., the real teenage con artist and career criminal, in Steven Spielberg’s exhilarating biopicCatch Me If You Can.
2Django Unchained
Despite being one of the most likable actors in the industry, DiCaprio didn’t have any problem playing one of the most evil characters in cinematic history in Quentin Tarantino’s modern masterpieceDjango Unchained. In this revisionist western that examines the history of racism in the United States, DiCaprio is truly terrifying as the despicable plantation owner Calvin Candie.
1The Departed
The Departedsuffered from unfortunate timing when it came to Oscar voting. According to theAcademy Awards’ official rules, an actor cannot be nominated twice in the same acting category for two different performances, which created confusion during the 2006 awards season (perVariety). DiCaprio had been acclaimed for his leading performances in bothBlood DiamondandThe Departed; he ended up getting the nomination forBlood Diamond, even thoughThe Departedwas the ceremony’s big winner and took home Best Picture.
While hisBlood Diamondperformance is certainly powerful, DiCaprio has never been quite as captivating as he is inThe Departed. He stars as the police officer Billy Costigan Jr., who goes undercover to gain the trust of the ruthless gangster Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson); Costello also has his informant Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon) working in the Boston police force. It’s a masterful cat-and-mouse game where DiCaprio feels the pressure of the situation at every moment.
