Whenever the topic of Leonardo DiCaprio’s acting talents come into conversation, it’s either he’s overrated or underrated, there’s no in-between. I’m sure that debate will continue on here.
There’s no doubt that, given all the acclaimed films he’s starred in, DiCaprio has turned into a sort of iconic American actor, one who never plays it safe, and always goes for auteur-driven projects. I’ll admit that he’s been miscast in some films, but when given the right role, he tends to deliver the goods. In plain terms, he’s a movie star.
One person who isn’t a fan of DiCaprio’s is Stephen Baldwin. The actor recently went on Patrick Bet-David’s podcast and slammed DiCaprio as an overrated and privileged actor who didn’t make it on talent. Baldwin seems to be at it again, this time on the Vlad TV podcast, shooting more darts at DiCaprio:
When you think of Leonardo DiCaprio, do you think of Daniel Day Lewis? I always looked at Leo as a little kid, I’ve never quite gotten to know the man. I just want to make this differentiation — there’s great actors and then there’s movie stars. Most of these guys you see today are movie stars.
Baldwin’s previous comments were actually much harsher towards DiCaprio. If anything, he’s toned it down a bit this time around. Here’s part of the transcript:
Leonardo DiCaprio, he’s not a good actor […] I think it takes a certain amount of depth and I think it takes a certain amount of presence and the greatest actors of all time were, when you watched them, they affected you […] The business says DiCaprio is great because he’s given great roles. He’s done some great films, but he’s not a great actor. He’s seen as a great actor not because he’s Gary Oldman. Not because he’s some guy who moved away from the business and did Broadway for 10 years to learn the craft on a deeper level. He didn’t do that.
Baldwin goes on to namecheck who he deems to be actual “great” actors such as Al Pacino, Jack Nicholson, Meryl Streep, Morgan Freeman, and Edward Norton. He also claims Joaquin Phoenix and Brad Pitt are overrated.
Forget about star power, or good looks, for a second. I disagree with Baldwin. DiCaprio is talented. Just watch his earlier child acting roles in “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” and “This Boy’s Life” — the talent is undeniable. The years have been very kind to DiCaprio, in fact, he may be one of the very last old-school actors left in Hollywood.
Regardless, I find it amusing that, of all people, Stephen Baldwin is the one criticizing DiCaprio. He’s been starring in B-movies these last 30 years.
Boyle's answer was met with a shout of "Never do that shit again" from the crowd, and the TIFF moderator swiftly brought the Q&A to a close, thanking everyone for coming.