Leonardo DiCaprio is going to play Leonardo da Vinci. Which is worth discussing, for sure, but what I got out of this story was something different: that a brand new biography about da Vinci is coming out and it sounds really good. The biography is simply called Leonardo da Vinci, and it was written by Walter Isaacson, the acclaimed biographer of books like Einstein: His Life and Universe, Steve Jobs and The Innovators: How a Group of Inventors, Hackers, Geniuses, and Geeks Created the Digital Revolution. The Steve Jobs book already became a movie starring Michael Fassbender (sort of, they did use it for source material) and the Einstein book was used for the NatGeo series Genius. So, Isaacson turned his researcher’s eye to da Vinci and the book is coming out soon. Before the book has even been published, there was a bidding war for the movie rights, based on just the galleys. Paramount and Universal both wanted the rights, and Paramount had DiCaprio lined up to star and produce, with his own producing shingle Appian Way. Paramount won the bidding war:
According to info from the publisher, Walter Isaacson used Da Vinci’s notebooks to weave a narrative that connects his art to his science and voracious curiosity and imagination. Aside from his priceless paintings, he pursued innovative studies of anatomy (his iconic drawing of Vitruvian Man), fossils, birds, the heart, flying machines, botany, geology and weaponry. He peeled flesh off the faces of cadavers, drew the muscles that move the lips and then painted history’s most memorable smile. He explored the math of optics, showed how light rays strike the cornea and produced illusions of changing perspectives in The Last Supper. Isaacson also describes how Leonardo’s lifelong enthusiasm for staging theatrical productions informed his paintings and inventions. According to the book, he also was a bit of a misfit: illegitimate, gay, vegetarian, left-handed, easily distracted and at times heretical.
Paramount just emerged from an intense two-studio bidding battle to win a seven-figure auction for the rights to Walter Isaacson’s book Leonardo da Vinci, which will be crafted as a star vehicle for Leonardo DiCaprio to play the painter/scientist. He and Jennifer Davisson will produce through their Appian Way banner. Paramount had the early lead on this one, but Universal came in aggressively Friday afternoon, and the bidding continued until it just wrapped up moments ago with ICM Partners brokering the deal for Isaacson. This is a big get for Paramount, where Appian Way has its deal and expects to be a big part of the studio rebound. After Universal stepped up, Paramount did what it had to do to win the title. Elizabeth Raposo was a big part of making it happen, sources said.
Leo had already inked a deal with Paramount following his Oscar win in 2016 – he will star and produce three films with Paramount, in association with his Appian Way production company. The film that they’ve been trying to put together for a year is the story of 1996 Atlanta Olympic bombing, where Jonah Hill would play Richard Jewell, the man falsely accused of planting the bomb, with Leo playing Jewell’s lawyer. I wonder if that project will be put on the backburner as this Leo-plays-Leo film gets pushed for a speedy production. As for the idea of Leo playing da Vinci… I don’t see it, but whatever. Like, Leo can’t do accents and it will be strange to see da Vinci portrayed by some dude with an American accent. I also don’t think Leo looks at all like da Vinci. But as I said, whatever. It’s happening and there’s nothing we can do about it.
Photos courtesy of WENN, Getty.
You know what, why not. He’s solid. Every time he acts I feel like it’s Leo being X, Y and Z, but it’s still entertaining.
I think he actually might do well in the role. As you said, he’s still watchable.
I read he got his first name while his mother was looking at a da Vinci painting. DiCaprio started kicking and she felt it was a sign.
The whole accent thing is weird – I find the idea of Da Vinci speaking English, regardless of American accent or Italian accent, odd. I mean, maybe da Vinci portrayed speaking English with an Italian accent may even more weird?
I don’t get that criticism either. I mean, what accent is he supposed to have? If it’s an American production I’ find it weird if some characters have Italian accent’s or something.
I’m just glad that they seem to have dropped that awful idea of Leo playing the poet Rumi…thankful for small blessings 😑
Would it kill Leo to use one of his three films to produce a movie about a women/POC?
LIke, no offense to Richard Jewell, but I won’t be back running to the theatre to see that’s film (boooorring).
Similarly I thought, would it kill Walter Isaacson to continue his author obsession with genius by covering a well known woman? Marie Curie would be a good place to start. Grit, brains, influence and a strong personal story. Or skip Walter Isaacson and go straight to screenplay.
For the record I really liked his Einstein bio but he does have a type.
I’m not surprised by this. I remember reading that da Vinci is why Leo’s mother named him Leonardo. I’ll reserve judgement of his portrayal until I actually see it. As far as accents go, if he uses a good dialect coach we may be spared something awful. If memory serves he was praised for his South African accent in Blood Diamond.
His accent was very good in Blood Diamond, he even did a bit of west african pidgeon. Kate Winslett on the other hand is appalling when it comes to US accents.
I can see, with an unusual name in America like Leonardo, how this role is important to him. He likely idolized da Vinci as a child.
Now that this role is locked in, I’m waiting for his Oscar-baity take on the other famous Leonardo from his youth – as in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Should be epic. /s
His accent seemed okay in Blood Diamond. However, his Boston accent in The Departed was so bad that it was distracting.
They even wrote an excuse into the film about why his accent was so bad. But people living in Beverly really don’t sound all that different from the people living in Southie. It is still the greater Boston area.
They should have just skipped it, IMO – not everyone in Massachusetts has a strong Boston accent. Much as I really dislike George Clooney, I’ve always thought his choice to not even attempt the accent for The Perfect Storm was the right one. Better no accent at all than a distractingly bad one.
I know DiCaprio has great career, recognize by everyone but it’s so boring to me. He never took one risky project in his career, once he started doing his Oscar bait projects he never stopped, never did an European auteur, neither a genre movie… Nothing exciting. Probably an unpopular opinion but that’s how I feel.
You sound like you’re concerned he doesn’t have big flops. He picks good works. He didn’t do any franchise which is what gives the big money. I have never seen him on the cover of any magazine shirtless selling appeal. He just shows up to work, acts professionally, goes back home to his model of the month. I have no problem with him at all. He never bothered nobody.
Also I love his oscar-bait movies whatever that is
I found his career’s choices boring that’s it. It has nothing to do with him staring in franchise however the fact that he doesn’t have any flop is telling. The bigger the risk you take, the harder you can fall sometimes but he doesn’t take any and it doesn’t have to involve big budget movies. DiCaprio doesn’t star on Broadway, he never did a comedy either for example. His career doesn’t have any edge, there’s no challenged. And It’s frustrating because he’s a pretty good actor but not versatile. That being said If you enjoy him and his boring biopic good for you.
he followed the wolf of wall street with the revenant, that’s pretty diverse.
I’m totally with you. Leo’s movies are by and large super boring. Nothing whatsoever appealing to me about WoWS or The Revenant.
The only Leo movies I’ve liked/bothered to watch in the last 10 years are Inception, Django, and The Departed.
Totally agree.
I actually like his role in django because it was something kind of different for him (not the lead, villain, over the top).
I think in general he is a serviceable actor who gets the best roles because he’s a box office draw. He’s no Daniel Day-Lewis but he’s not Ben Affleck either. A lot of average to above average actors can make good movies if they get to work with the best directors.
Well Total Eclipse was by a European and a woman and an auteur film. He tried the indie route in his beginnings and opted for bigger ones whan he had enough clout (I personnally took notice of him with Marvin’s room and the Basketball Diaries which was controversial at the time). There was also some pearl clutching with how Shakespeare was violated with Romeo+Juliet. And Inception is a genre film (a gamble at the time), Wolf of Wall Street a comedy.
And in the world of cinephiles, Scorsese is an auteur.
Never understood his quest for the Oscar though, but that never prevented me from enjoying his work. I guess I’m one of few on this site.
And regarding the ” it will be strange to see da Vinci portrayed by some dude with an American accent”, what’s new here? For decades , Hollywood has made pictures set in France, Germany,Russia,with French and German and Russian all speaking English, throwing in an occasional Monsieur, Herr or spassiba.
I rolled my eyes at this when I first read it and continue to do so. I am tired of his limited range. He plays one or two types with some differences sprinkled in for each role. He is not a well rounded actor and overrated. I thought the Revenant was a waste of time and average. When he was younger it was different but now it is the same. I hate this casting choice. I know what is meant about his accent. He has a California American accent like Kevin Costner but it works better for KC because he doesn’t whine like Leonardo does, and he doesn’t sound like a teenager. Ryan Gosling would have been better since he has proven range or Aaron Taylor Johnson or Oscar Issac or someone who can bring intensity. My nasty boo Tom Hardy or even Tom Hiddleston (he needs a cleanse after his Swifty Tour of Cringe).
I can’t with Leo Di Cap.
Eh. So much ‘eh’. All the ‘eh’. No. I genuinely don’t understand the praise for him. He always looks like he’s imagining all the awards he thinks he deserves for what he’s spouting, while he’s spouting it.
As far as I remember, Leonardo was gay, liked dressing fully in pink, and was an eager and skilled dancer. Waiting with bated breath on Leo’s take.
i thought pink as a “girl colour” was quite recent, and as a/the “gay colour” even more recent. So is it just a coincidence that he was gay and also liked pink ?
It’s true that the gender coding of pink is a relatively recent development. It’s also true, though, that there is strong evidence that da Vinci was gay. However, I don’t think liking the color pink is evidence of it.
Leo is one of the few movie stars left, – no one else could have turned that bear movie into such a hit – and Paramount needs all the help they can get.
Also nice symmetry, since his mom named him cause he kicked her in utero, whilst she was looking at a Da Vinci painting.😇
I love Leo. His personal life doesn’t bother me at all. I’ve rarely been as entertained by any actor on screen.
Personally, I’m tired of seeing this mans face, hearing about his dating life, and people forgetting this overgrown child is part of a group of gross underwhelming humans that dubbed themselves the “p$$$y posse”.
I don’t have any more room for fools in my brain so I just don’t watch any of his movies ever.
Another boys club movie for Leo #wolf pack. Given Da Vinci’s story, if there’s any large speaking roles for woman in this movie I’ll be shocked.
Lukas Haas needs another job after all..
re accents. Why should he have an Italian accent? If he portrays an Italian and we believe that everybody around him is also Italian and they speak the same language, i.e. English standing in for Italian – he does not need to have an accent. That bugs me about a lot of Hollywood movies. Why give a ‘native’ an accent? Because they believe the audience is so dumb, that they cannot understand that?
Having Leo do an Italian accent would be horrible. However, I think Leo using his contemporary California accent would also be terrible. They are going to have to do something with his voice. Good luck to them with that.
His accent is California and that accent sounds like you said contemporary and it will ruin the film. Ugh sick of him.
It was okay in Schindler’s List. They spoke in German or other European accents. It actually made it more authentic and it probably would have been strange to have all these Brit, North American, etc actors speaking their country and with-in-country-regional accents.
i think leo sometimes gets lost in gossip over his dating life, when the truth is that he’s one of the very few classic actors that we have. he doesn’t work too much or too little and he picks movies that are stand out films. so many of his movies are classics. people get caught up in gossip i feel and overlook what a great actor he is, and a very smart one as well.
I think he’s a good actor but not a great one. I think some people are limited by biology when it comes to acting and Leo is one of them. Some people can emote better through the eyes and face – it’s God/nature given, like singing. Actors like Clive Owen know their limits and don’t try to do super-emotive stuff and hence he talks about creating presence rather than emotion. Other actors like Christine Bale seem to be able to switch it on or off. Or maybe I have no clue what I’m talking about.
This can’t be real…like…girl…what? No. Get it away. Get!
My god who approved this? Make it stop! I can almost smell the janky beard and long hair they’ll invariably give his character. Where’s Daniel Day Lewis?
DDL? Retired.
Back to making shoes.
Cannot get over how much he reminds me physically of an aging Brando. Like Clooney looks like an aged Raymond Burr.
I actually really like Leo and think this role is almost full circle. His parents named him after Da Vinci after all.
I do however get sad looking at Leo. For some reason, especially when he was younger he reminded me of River Phoenix. And I can’t help but wonder what type of career River would have if he had lived. I think Leo also would have had a very different career with River still in the running.
Sure Leo, you look super italian XD. Wtf don’t ruin Leonardo da Vinci.
Leo da Vinci was a mysterious and complicated human, so much of his early life is still unknown. The layers of his genius are hard to grasp let alone write about. Can’t wait to read Issacson’s book. No doubt DiCaprio will do this eventual film justice!
Wow, the trailer just writes itself (or this was the actual elevator pitch):
Leonardo DiCaprio… IS… Leonardo DaVinci
Yeah the Vetruvian Man, bring it! I have liked a handful of his movies over the years. I have always wondered about those guys navigating pedo HW during their formative years. As if maybe they lived through awful shit together that created a life bond.
His face is like a madame Tussaud wax figure in the cover image. Dead eyes.
I agree. Don’t think he’s very emotive in the face compare with ppl like Christian Bale, Fass, etc. He has a rubber-face syndrome. It’s biology, like singing talent. I find even Mark Wahlberg is more facially emotive in films than Leo, but Leo picks great projects and is undeniably committed.
He can act all he want and do any movie he likes, as long as he stays out of the whole climate change campaign, he is such a hypocrite. It’s like he doesn’t get it… And maybe he doesn’t need to, he’s an actor, he should stick to acting.
Also never understood why he wanted that Oscar so bad.
WHAT? he can’t do accents? have you even seen blood diamond or the departed? accents might be the one thing he’s good at.