MOVIE NEWS – Leonardo DiCaprio’s performance in one of Christopher Nolan’s big films was just the tip of the iceberg regarding his contribution to the film’s success.

In the incredibly successful and Oscar-winning Inception, Leonardo DiCaprio and Christopher Nolan may have had more of a partnership than fans realise. The film’s leading man seems to have played a significant role in the film’s development.

Despite the fact that Inception is essentially a sci-fi thriller, the film is about grief and loss, but this might not have been the case if it wasn’t for DiCaprio’s involvement.

The actor played a big part in the early development of the script before the cameras started rolling.

Nolan owes a lot to DiCaprio. According to Tom Shone’s book ‘The Nolan Variations’, the actor ‘encouraged’ and ‘demanded’ that Nolan put a better script on the table. One that leans away from the superficial genre and in a “more character-driven direction”. According to the renowned director, DiCaprio didn’t write any scenes of the film. However, he reviewed drafts and offered advice on how to proceed, much like an editor would to a book writer. Nolan adds that DiCaprio “reviewed the script and came up with ideas”. DiCaprio’s input and Nolan’s rigorous approach to the Inception script seemed to pay off. Inception was not only a huge success but also inspired other films. For example, the stunning animation Paprika, another character-driven thriller film that juggles what is perceived as the real world with the dream world.

Nolan goes on to explain how DiCaprio’s notes significantly influenced Origin. He goes on to say that the rewriting process was complex and “took months”. According to Nolan, DiCaprio was reportedly demanding but also “very productive”. As a result, he created “a much more resonant film”.

At the time of its release, Nolan had initially intended to make an Origin video game, speculated to be an MMO, hoping to expand the idea into different mediums, but this did not materialise.

DiCaprio has been a massive movie star since Titanic. It’s nice to see the actor behind the scenes doing so much to make Nolan’s follow-up to The Dark Knight the best possible film. The ambiguous ending of Origin could have turned the climactic twist into more movies. But perhaps it is better as a standalone experience that leaves the viewer guessing until the final moments.

Source: Twitter

According to Christopher Nolan, Leonardo Di Caprio pushed him to change his original script for Inception, which made the film better :

“I was working on a more superficial version of the project, superficial may be overstating it, because all the story elements were in there,… pic.twitter.com/zJ48Xye6kT

— Christopher Nolan Art & Updates (@NolanAnalyst) April 6, 2023