Leonardo DiCaprio Was Convinced To Do Titanic By This Actor

Having doubts about taking on the role of Jack Dawson, the superstar turned to this co-star for advice.

By emily belfiore Oct 17, 2019 11:59 AMTags
Leonardo DiCaprio, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood Premiere, Red Carpet FashionRob Latour/Shutterstock

Leonardo DiCaprio almost let go of Titanic

Yes, the superstar actor almost turned down the role of Jack Dawson in the mega-hit. But, thankfully Paul Rudd, his co-star in 1996's Romeo + Juliet, talked him through his doubts.

"It was my last day of filming Romeo + Juliet and we all went out to a bar afterwards," Rudd recalled on The Graham Norton Show. "I was riding to the place with Leo and he said, ‘I just got offered this movie and it's a big movie. It's a studio movie. It's Titanic."

As fate would have it, Rudd's father was a Titanic expert, which made him even more excited and eager to convince DiCaprio.  "I said, ‘That's incredible,' and I knew a lot about Titanic because my dad would just talk about it," he continued. "And we just had a conversation about it and he was saying, ‘Oh, I don't know what I'll do.' And I remember saying, ‘You should do it!'"

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Being ever so modest, Rudd didn't take credit for "influencing" DiCaprio's career, as host Graham Norton put it.

"I don't think I had any say," the Clueless alum mused, "But it is kind of interesting to think back on that. ‘Cause he did it."

While no one could rescue the sinking ship, Rudd certainly saved DiCaprio from making a terrible decision!