Leonardo Dicaprio Was Forced to Bring His A-Game for His Most Despicable Role to Truly Honor History

When Leonardo DiCaprio dove into his darkest role yet, playing a brutal racist so vile, even he needed convincing it had to go that far.

When it comes to playing dark, twisted characters on screen, it can take a toll on actors who couldn’t be further from the role they are meant to portray.

It wasn’t any different for Leonardo DiCaprio when he starred in one of Quentin Tarantino’s finest works, Django Unchained.

The 2012 Western had him playing “Monsieur” Calvin J.

Candie, a villain that would make your skin crawl.

As the owner of Candyland plantation, Leonardo DiCaprio had to play a staunch racist who profits off of slavery and makes his slaves engage in brutal fights where the results are either victory or death.

When he first got the role, Leonardo DiCaprio was reluctant to take things so far.

However, his team soon made him realize just why it was so important for his character to be so extreme.

Leonardo DiCaprio was hesitant to play Candie

Leonardo DiCaprio in Django Unchained (2012) | Credits: Columbia Pictures.

A Southern plantation owner with a twisted charm and a heart made of ice, Candie is unlike any other villain you have seen before.

Underneath his charming facade, there lies an unpredictable and vicious man who isn’t just casually racist, no, he’s deeply committed to white supremacy.

In one scene, he uses phrenology to justify white supremacy and black inferiority.

Truly, a man who wholeheartedly believes that racism can be justified through science is a heathen.

It takes a certain level of talent to play a character that doesn’t have an ounce of likability to his name, and somehow, he makes it work.

During the press day for Django Unchained, Leonardo DiCaprio was asked about the hateful way he was forced to treat some of the movie’s characters.

As it turns out, he was hesitant right from the get-go.

He admitted that this was his first time playing a character he had so much “disdain” for.

Even though he was no stranger to racism in the world, playing one on screen was what he describes as “a very uncomfortable situation.” He stated (via Indie Wire),

This was my first attempt at playing a character that I had this much disdain for.

It was an incredibly uncomfortable environment to be in.

I’ve seen racism growing up but the degree I had to treat other people in this film was disturbing.

It was a very uncomfortable situation.

While going through the initial read-through, DiCaprio voiced his concerns to the team, asking if they really had to go to the extreme levels with his character.

The actor recalled, “One of the pivotal moments for me and this character, was this initial readthrough, and I brought up, ‘Do we need to push it this far?

Does it need to be this violent?’” Clearly, he was extremely uncomfortable with playing a character who was as heinous as Candie.

And we don’t blame him at all.

In fact, even the director couldn’t stand the character he created.

How Quentin Tarantino convinced Leonardo DiCaprio to go brutal

A still from Django Unchained | Credits: Columbia Pictures.