They’re two of the biggest actors in the world. But until 2019, Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt had never starred in a full length movie together (though they were on the same TV show). Luckily, they seem to have hit it off well -- and now, Leonardo DiCaprio is sharing what he found most impressive about his Once Upon A Time in Hollywood costar.
In an interview with Deadline, Leonardo DiCaprio talked at length about what it was like to work with Brad Pitt, who played stuntman Cliff Booth to DiCaprio's actor Rick Dalton. DiCaprio had plenty of positive things to say about his fellow A-lister. And he opened up about how easy it was for them to create that on-screen dynamic from the get go:
What was very interesting about working with Brad was this strange inherent comfort and ease that we really both clicked into day one. It didn’t need a lot of prep work. We talked about the script, and we instinctively knew that dynamic and relationship, and who these guys were to one another. We both have been in those situations and have had and have those relationships on set. Also, these two guys go off and spiral off into their own side stories, and then they reconnect.
Leonardo DiCaprio also talked about how refreshing it was to work alongside Brad Pitt as two equals who each brought a unique perspective to their scenes as Rick and Cliff:
But with Brad, he’s an incredible professional. There was a lot of improvising between us, and neither of us had this sense…I don’t want to speak for him but I will because I know it will be the same answer. There was no, I’m going to try to top you, or I’m going to piss all over this parade. It was, how do we make this a realistic dynamic because we were going off and doing our own side stories. I did a whole other film, and then Brad did a whole other film, and then I’d come in weeks later and pop back and say what’s up to him, and do a scene together. After we had done two completely different movies. It doesn’t seem that way but it’s really what happened. I went off and did that whole Lancer set thing for months, and then he did his whole thing.
Once Upon A Time in Hollywood is Quentin Tarantino’s love letter to the movie industry. And Leonardo DiCaprio shared with Deadline that he was blown away by Brad Pitt’s ability to embody a classic Hollywood cool in his performance as Cliff Booth:
We were doing two completely different films, and then we got to merge together. What I was so impressed with about Brad’s performance was it is a very particular craft and skill to be able to do that kind of completely contained quite cool, Alain Delon or Steve McQueen, and hold the screen like that. I was like, holy shit. It was so incredibly impressive what he was able to do with that character. We had our own dynamic on set, but watching the movie, I was like, wow.
Since Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt worked so well together in Once Upon A Time in Hollywood, we can only hope they’ll team up again in the future. But in the meantime, we -- and they -- can enjoy the continued success of their first collaboration. Once Upon A Time in Hollywood is now available on Blu-Ray.
