Claim: Leonardo DiCaprio is male.

Leonardo Wilhelm DiCaprio -LRB- -LSB- dᵻˈkæpri.oʊ -RSB- born November 11 , 1974 -RRB- is an American actor , film producer , and environmental activist . DiCaprio began his career by appearing in television commercials in the early 1990s , after which he had recurring roles in various television series such as the soap opera Santa Barbara and the sitcom Growing Pains . He began his film career by starring as Josh in Critters 3 -LRB- 1991 -RRB- . He starred in the film adaptation of the memoir This Boy 's Life -LRB- 1993 -RRB- , and was praised for his supporting role in What 's Eating Gilbert Grape -LRB- 1993 -RRB- . He gained public recognition with leading roles in The Basketball Diaries -LRB- 1995 -RRB- and the romantic drama Romeo + Juliet -LRB- 1996 -RRB- , before achieving international fame with James Cameron 's epic romance Titanic -LRB- 1997 -RRB- , which became the highest-grossing film of all time until Cameron 's science fiction film Avatar -LRB- 2009 -RRB- overtook it .   Since 2000 , DiCaprio has received critical acclaim for his work in a wide range of film genres . DiCaprio 's subsequent films include The Man in the Iron Mask -LRB- 1998 -RRB- , the biographical crime drama Catch Me If You Can -LRB- 2002 -RRB- , and the epic historical drama Gangs of New York -LRB- 2002 -RRB- , which marked his first of many collaborations with director Martin Scorsese . He was acclaimed for his performances in the political war thriller Blood Diamond -LRB- 2006 -RRB- , the neo-noir crime drama The Departed -LRB- 2006 -RRB- , the espionage thriller Body of Lies -LRB- 2008 -RRB- , the drama Revolutionary Road -LRB- 2008 -RRB- , the psychological thriller Shutter Island -LRB- 2010 -RRB- , the science fiction thriller Inception -LRB- 2010 -RRB- , the biographical film J. Edgar -LRB- 2011 -RRB- , the western Django Unchained -LRB- 2012 -RRB- , and the period drama The Great Gatsby -LRB- 2013 -RRB- .   DiCaprio 's portrayals of Howard Hughes in The Aviator -LRB- 2004 -RRB- and Hugh Glass in The Revenant -LRB- 2015 -RRB- won him the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor -- Motion Picture Drama , and his role as Jordan Belfort in The Wolf of Wall Street -LRB- 2013 -RRB- won him the award for Best Actor -- Motion Picture Musical or Comedy . He also won his first Academy Award and BAFTA Award for his performance in The Revenant . DiCaprio is the founder of his own production company , Appian Way Productions .