Leonardo DiCaprio is already being considered a frontrunner for Best Actor Oscar even though The Revenant is still two months from release. And while he would never want you to think that he really, really, really wants it, nor would he want you to see that he’ll campaign as much as he can to get it… you know, we know.
This time though, he’s starting early.
Here he is last night in New York at the Directors Guild Of America Honours Gala presenting to Thelma Schoonmaker (what a great name) who is a long-time Scorsese collaborator. So he’s there for a friend. And he’s also in front of an influential body when it comes to Oscar decision-making. Leo’s in tight with the Scorsese family but it also helps to sell him as a director’s actor, a collaborator, an artist who puts the film first before the performance. Is that enough to put him over Depp and Redmayne and possibly Hanks? Probably not. Much more work to be done. So many alliances to be made. But he’ll look like this the entire stretch. Hair short, facial hair reasonably under control, and firmly, firmly 40.
