CANNES, FRANCE: On the night of May 20, Martin Scorsese’s ‘Killers of the Flower Moon’ premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and received a nine-minute standing ovation. The 3-hour and 26-minute film, based on David Grann’s acclaimed non-fiction book about the Osage Murders, stars Robert De Niro and Lily Gladstone alongside the leading man Leonardo DiCaprio, who was seen at the premiere for his seventh Scorsese film wearing a black suit with a collar.
For decades, the 48-year-old Oscar-winning actor has had a potent presence on screen. However, Leonardo credits his father George Paul DiCaprio, who has been "a huge force" with him and also introduced him to Robert De Niro’s films, saying, “Son, watch closely because this is what great acting looks like," reports People.
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"My dad always told me, ‘Go out there, son, and whatever you do, I don’t care if you’re successful or not, just have an interesting life. Just be happy to put your pants on in the morning.' I believe I’m doing that," He told Parade in 2016. He noted that his "father has always been a huge force" with him, stated GQ in 2011. Prior to this, he told Rolling Stone, “The earliest memory I have is me at some hippie concert with my dad and the band hadn’t come on. There was an audience of hundreds of people chanting for the band, and my dad scooted me on stage–I don’t know how old I was, probably three or so–and I got up there and tap-danced for hundreds of people.”
Who is George Paul DiCaprio?
Born on October 2, 1943, George was a performance artist and comic book distributor. He married Irmalin DiCaprio, who worked at the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, and later, the duo became parents to Leonardo, reports ABC News. Leonardo said he got his name because his parents were looking at a portrait of Leonardo da Vinci in the Uffizi and his "dad, being the man that picks up on cosmic messages, said that 'His name must be Leonardo'."
George Paul DiCaprio's cameo in 'Licorice Pizza'
George made a cameo in Paul Thomas Anderson’s film 'Licorice Pizza', where he played the role of Mr Jack, the owner of a wig shop that sells water beds. The film was released on November 26, 2021. Speaking to Entertainment Tonight about his father’s cameo, Leonardo said, “I haven’t seen it yet but my dad George DiCaprio has a cameo in a Paul Thomas Anderson movie! Today was a good day.”
Speaking about how George’s casting came about, PTA said, “I created a picture of a guy who owned a wig shop that sold these water beds, and I couldn’t put my finger on it. I kept saying, ‘Who do I know that looks like this?’ And like a bolt of lightning, I remember, like, ‘Leo’s dad looks exactly like this’. So I tracked him down, asked him if he’d ever be interested in being in a film. He said, ‘Sure’. I explained the scenario to him. He said, ‘Sounds great. Did Leo tell you that I owned a water bed company?’ It was called Foggy Bottom.”