Over the years, Leonardo DiCaprio has become one of the most revered actors of our time. Despite his never winning an Academy Award (though that will almost certainly change this year because of The Revenant), he has been extremely popular for the entirety of his acting career.
DiCaprio is no stranger to playing roles in blockbuster movies, considering his roles in Inception, The Great Gatsby, and Titanic, but he has never played in any big franchises. The closest he’s ever come is when he played in The Man in the Iron Mask, which was adapted from a book in the Three Musketeers series. But as was heavily rumored at the time, he was actually approached about playing Anakin Skywalker in Star Wars Episode II.
However, obviously, he passed on playing Anakin. In an interview that is becoming more popular due to Star Wars Mania, he said, “I just didn’t feel ready to take that dive,” when referring to playing as the main character of the Star Wars saga. He didn’t want to act in roles that would keep him tied down for years to come, no matter how prestigious.
He was similarly approached as playing Robin in Batman Forever, and Spider-Man in the 2002 Spider-Man movie. He turned them down for the same reasons as Anakin.
Now, around fifteen years after Star Wars Episode II and Spider-Man, DiCaprio is on the cusp of finally winning his coveted Oscar after several losses. After that, will he continue to make the same types of movies, or will he end up taking up a role in one of many franchises? What do you think?