One might call it fate, or one might call it the actor’s dedication, but one thing’s for sure, the hard work that Joaquin Phoenix put into his role as Arthur Fleck in the Award-winning Joker was anything but pure luck. Returning to films after a long hiatus did not stop the star from doing absolute wonders for his career and finally letting the world recognize his efforts.
Even after making a legacy with his iconic role along with many of his performances in the past, the star accepted that his efforts would be dwarfed compared to Leonardo DiCaprio’s reputation in the industry. During the 26th SAG Awards, the actor revealed that no matter how many auditions he went to, his fellow star’s influence was too much to handle.
Joaquin Phoenix Revealed That He Lost To Leonardo DiCaprio’s Reputation In The Industry Several Times
The film industry is a place of culmination of some of the most extraordinary talent when it comes to performances in front of the camera. Thus, to stand out from the rest as one of the greatest, a star has to do everything in their power to gain the recognition they desire. Joaquin Phoenix is one of the stars in a long list of actors who have substantiated his legacy in the history books of cinema with his role as the titular protagonist of Joker.
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But getting to where he is now was not a road that was easy to tread, and the biggest competitor of his to the top was none other than Leonardo DiCaprio. During the night of the 26th SAG Awards (via TNT), the star was awarded with the Best Male Actor in Leading Role for his performance in and as Joker. The star was grateful to everyone, even his fellow nominees, among whom the Titanic star was also present along with Christian Bale, Adam Driver, and Taron Egerton.
Phoenix revealed that despite how hard he tried, he would always lose to DiCaprio during the final trials of his auditions. He said:
“When I started acting again and going to auditions, I’d always get to like, the final callback, and I think many people know what that’s like. And there would be like, two other guys I was up against. And we would always lose to this one kid. No actor would ever say his name because it was like, too much, but evey casting director would whisper his name ‘It’s Leonardo, It’s Leonardo!'”
In fact, DiCaprio has been so monumental in the industry that even Bale lost to him initially for one of his most iconic roles in American Psycho.
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How Leonardo DiCaprio’s Rejection Got Christian Bale His Role In American Psycho
Considered to be one of, if not the most iconic role of his career, Christian Bale’s portrayal of Patrick Bateman in American Psycho was a result of the Inception star’s rejection of the role.
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It was reported that in the past that DiCaprio was given priority preference for the role of the axe-wielding serial killer in the aforementioned film, but due to creative differences and other factors, the star left the project. This was when Bale was brought to the project to play the role of the main character of the film, and the rest is history.
Joker, streaming on Max.
