• Leonardo DiCaprio is up for best actor for his role in “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood.”
  • He’s already got one Academy Award and a total of seven nominations under his belt.
  • DiCaprio has been acting since he was 14 years old – he started in commercials and TV and moved onto feature films.
  • The “Titanic” actor has an estimated net worth of $260 million. Here’s how he built his career, spends his fortune, and advocates for climate health.
  • Visit Insider’s homepage for more stories.

Leonardo DiCaprio is best known for his roles in iconic films like “Titanic,” “Wolf of Wall Street,” and “The Revenant.”

Foto: sourceKevin Mazur/Getty Images for Turner

Source: IMDb


This year, he secured an Oscar nomination for his role in “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood.”

Foto: sourceAndrew Cooper/Columbia Pictures

Source: ABC Oscars


DiCaprio has had a long career in acting, which began when he was a teenager. His first gig was a matchbox car commercial at 14 years old.

Foto: sourceAisyaqilumaranas/Shutterstock

Source: The New York Times, People


In his younger years, DiCaprio was mainly an actor on the small screen. He was in a number of TV shows including “The Outsiders,” “Roseanne,” and “Parenthood.”

Foto: DiCaprio played Darlene Conner’s classmate on “Roseanne.”sourceParamount Television

Source: IMDb


DiCaprio's first film role was in a direct-to-DVD movie titled "Critters 3" in which aliens terrorize a city, according to Entertainment Tonight.

Foto: DiCaprio and castmates in "Critters 3."sourceNew Line Home Video

Source: Entertainment Tonight


DiCaprio had a recurring role on "Growing Pains" from 1991 to 1992. He played the part of Luke Brower, a displaced boy, on the hit show.

Foto: sourceABC

Source: IMDb


In early interviews, the young actor would joke around and dub himself a "class clown." He laughed in an interview and said his tag line should read "sarcastic jerk."

Foto: DiCaprio in 1990 pictured above.sourceNBC/Contributor/Getty Images

Source: justdenise via YouTube


He also said he used to call people who sent him fan mail. "It's really fun to make them a little happy," DiCaprio said. "I like that."

Foto: sourceDarlene Hammond/Contributor/Getty Images

Source: justdenise via YouTube


Robert DeNiro called on DiCaprio to play his stepson in the movie "This Boy's Life." His role as Tobias Wolff is what launched his career on the big screen.

Foto: sourceWarner Bros. Pictures

Source: IMDb, People


Then, his role in "What's Eating Gilbert Grape" catapulted him to movie stardom, according to People.

Foto: sourceParamount Pictures

Source: IMDb, People


He went on to star in "Romeo + Juliet" ...

Foto: source20th Century Fox

... and then "Titanic," which became an iconic career moment for him as well.

Foto: sourceParamount Pictures

Throughout his journey to the top, DiCaprio remained a jokester and a young man who took his mother to award shows despite him having an extensive dating history.

Foto: DiCaprio and his mother (left).sourceSean Gallup/Getty Images

The first public relationship he had was reportedly in 1994 with supermodel Bridget Hall.

Foto: DiCaprio and Hall pictured above in 1994.sourceDave Allocca/Contributor/Getty Images

Source: Harper's Bazaar


He subsequently dated a number of models, actresses, and socialites through 2000 when he reportedly started dating supermodel Gisele Bündchen.

Foto: DiCaprio and Gisele Bündchen in 2005.sourceL. Cohen/Contributor/Getty Images

Source: Harper's Bazaar, E!


He dated Bündchen through 2005 and then dated model Bar Refaeli on and off from 2005 through 2011.

Foto: DiCaprio and Refaeli in 2010.sourceKevork Djansezian/Staff/Getty Images

Source: Harper's Bazaar


His latest romance has been one with actress Camila Morrone.

Foto: sourceJean Catuffe/Contributor/Getty Images

Source: Insider


In 2016, DiCaprio won an Academy Award for his role in "The Revenant."

Foto: DiCaprio with his trophy for the best-actor award in 2016.sourceC Flanigan/FilmMagic

Source: IMDb


Before his win, he had been nominated five times. He's now been nominated for seven Oscars, including his 2016 win and his 2020 nomination.

Foto: DiCaprio earned his seventh Oscar nomination for 'Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.'sourceSony Pictures

Source: IMDb


DiCaprio was the highest-paid male Oscar nominee in 2016, according to Forbes. He was paid upfront for "The Revenant" and was still receiving payments from older films, which totaled an estimated $29 million from June 2014 to June 2015.

Foto: sourceJason Merritt/Getty Images/Amazon

Source: Forbes


One of those older films is "Titanic." DiCaprio was reportedly paid a base salary of $2.5 million, but he also negotiated for a percentage of its revenue. He made an estimated $40 million total from the one movie.

Foto: sourceParamount Pictures

Source: Celebrity Net Worth


Today, the movie star is estimated to have a net worth of $260 million.

Foto: DiCaprio in "Wolf of Wall Street."sourceParamount Pictures

Source: Celebrity Net Worth


Leo has a lot more than just award-winning acting on his agenda. He started the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation in 1998 shortly after "Titanic."

Foto: Photo from the 2018 Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation Gala.sourceRich Polk/Stringer/Getty Images

Source: Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation


The foundation funds projects, awards grants, and supports different organizations all in the name of building "long-term health and wellbeing of all Earth's inhabitants."

Foto: Cuyana x RAD 2019 panel featuring Justin Winters, former executive director of the foundation.sourceStefanie Keenan/Contributor/Getty Images

Source: Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation


The mission includes a dedication to efforts that will build "climate resiliency," support indigenous rights, spur grassroots environmentalism through media and technology, and so much more.

Foto: Mark Ruffalo, Jane Goodall, and Leonardo DiCaprio at the foundation gala in 2018.sourceRich Polk/Stringer/Getty Images

Source: Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation


In 2017, the environmental activist became an investor in plant-based meat company Beyond Meat.

Foto: A Beyond Burger pictured above.sourceLeanna Garfield/Business Insider

Source: Beyond Meat, Fortune


The actor also put his money into real estate. In 1998, he purchased a Malibu home for $1.6 million. In 2017 he put it on the market for $10.95 million but then listed it as a rental.

Foto: As of 2017, renters could stay in the home for $25,000 a month.sourceGoogle Maps

Source: Architectural Digest


After a trip to Belize in the mid-2000s, DiCaprio fell in love with the area. He told The New York Times that "it was like heaven on earth."

Foto: sourceGoogle Maps

Source: The New York Times


He said he purchased an island off the coast for $1.75 million and started work on the eco-resort Blackadore Caye, a Restorative Island.

Source: Business Insider, The New York Times


Celebrity Net Worth estimates the star's entire real estate portfolio to be worth more than $100 million.

Foto: sourceParamount

Source: Celebrity Net Worth


DiCaprio has many big-name films under his belt, but he's still got many more to come including a Martin Scorsese-directed biopic about President Theodore Roosevelt.

Foto: sourcePaul Drinkwater/NBCUniversal Media, LLC via Getty Images

Source: IMDb