Life Lessons from Leonardo DiCaprio

Welcome to Life Lessons. This week, an all-to-brief teaser for the upcoming Netflix comedy Don’t Look Up has us falling in love with Leonardo DiCaprio all over again. To cool off, we’re taking you back to 1994 with some words of wisdom from our cover interview with the then 20-year-old actor. Sit down, grab a pen—you just might learn a thing or two.

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“I could never focus on things I didn’t want to learn. Math is just the worst.”

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“I’m still exploring in a lot of ways. I don’t know myself completely.”

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“I think actors make the mistake of finding their little niche in the business and once they try to do something a little darker, boom, they get slapped across the face for it, so they go back to what they did before. That’s why the business can be cruel, because it doesn’t encourage you to learn.”

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“I think it’s a false notion that there can be a paradise.”

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“I think sexiness in most people—and this is going to sound superficial–is definitely something you don’t plan.”

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“There was no handbook for me. I couldn’t go to Barnes & Noble and pick up a book on what it was like: a guide to being famous for dummies.”

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“Whenever I notice myself doing something to please somebody else, I try to stop it.”

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“I’ve always been wild. Now I have a lot more material to work with.”

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“Acting is the only time when I truly maintain the spontaneity that I want to be present at all times.”

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“The things you did everyday with [parents], whether it was spending every Sunday morning with your dad and eating French toast and watching Popeye, or decorating the Christmas tree with your mother—these are the memories that help you be happy.”

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“I think acting is enough for now. More than anything, I want to travel. And I know I want to really fall in love eventually.”

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“No matter what, becoming well-known makes your mind start thinking in a different way.”

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“I am the type of person that wants to share a lot.”

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