“He couldn’t fathom just moving on”: Leonardo DiCaprio Clashed With James Cameron for One Reason That Later Soured His Relationship With Clint Eastwood
James Cameron has a self-imposed 20 takes rule that did not sit well with Leonardo DiCaprio
SUMMARY
- James Cameron and Leonardo DiCaprio had some differences in opinion on the set of Titanic
- The director has a 20-takes rule in which he believes that if he couldn’t get a shot in 20 takes, it is best to move on
- But Leonardo DiCaprio believes that one should keep trying till they get the perfect shot
- This what landed him in trouble with Clint Eastwood, who doesn’t believe in too many takes
Leonardo DiCaprio is an actor respected throughout the world for how wonderfully talented he is. Having worked with so many talented directors and actors, he has shone regardless of the star power a project may have. Making a name for himself, DiCaprio has become one of the most well-known actors in Hollywood. One of his most iconic films, Titanic, was also with a legendary director.
Due to the difference in his acting methods, it is not new to see Leonardo DiCaprio clashing head-to-head with his directors because of one scene or another. One such incident also happened to be with Cameron and Titanic, because the two of them could not see eye to eye for one scene in particular.
James Cameron has a 20-Take Rule
James Cameron admitted in an interview with Empire Magazine that his chase for perfection led him to keep a rule while filming his movies. He explained as to how no scene in his movies cannot take longer than 20 takes to be filmed. Although it may seem a lot on its own, he takes these 20 takes to further perfect the sequences he worked so hard on.
“Why would you walk away before you know you’ve done your best and gotten the very best the actors have to give? So, the 20-take rule is self-imposed, to keep me disciplined in a real world of deadlines and budgets. Plus, if you can’t get it in 20 takes, there’s probably something fundamentally wrong with the set-up, so shoot a quick cutaway and move on.”
Not only does he understand how well a scene would work, but it also helps in understanding how bad a scene is. If 20 takes cannot solve a problem, then it is best to remove that scene altogether. However, this backfired when the director was once working with Leonardo DiCaprio.
James Cameron and Leonardo DiCaprio Clashed on the Set of Titanic
In the same interview with Empire Magazine, James Cameron confirmed that this rule had led for him to pull the plug on one scene in Titanic. That did not sit well with Leonardo DiCaprio and the two found themselves clashing because of it. In fact, Cameron admitted that DiCaprio was a bigger perfectionist than the director himself.
“I remember Leo DiCaprio was outraged when I pulled the plug on a ‘oner’ scene at 20 takes,” Cameron stated. “We didn’t have it and he couldn’t fathom just moving on. He was more of a perfectionist that I was! I recall we used take three.”
This was not the only time the actor’s perfectionist personality became a problem for the directors. While filming J. Edgar, DiCaprio, and Clint Eastwood also did not see eye-to-eye because of how differently they both perceived the scenes. On one hand, Eastwood likes minimum takes for his films, on the other, DiCaprio will take as many takes as possible to perfect a scene.
