For his role in The Revenant he ate a raw bison liver. But the raw power of Leonardo DiCaprio’s performance in Alejandro Gonzales Iñarritu’s stunning film is even more apparent in his often-wordless struggle with the brutal forces of man and nature.

“When I read the script, I actually kept urging Alejandro to take more lines out,” he commented about the screenplay that Alejandro co-wrote with Mark Smith, based on Michael Punke’s novel. “I wanted less dialogue because that was the exploration of this character – how to portray someone’s emotional journey without words. I have done so many articulate characters who babble throughout movies.”Handpicked by no less than Robert De Niro from 400 aspiring actors to costar with him in This Boy’s Life, Leonardo broke through on the big screen in that titular role. Before that, the boy who landed an audition for a commercial when he was six years old appeared in TV sitcoms. He often competed for the same roles against Tobey Maguire, who became his buddy.Riding on the critical acclaim for his performance in This Boy’s Life, Leonardo virtually grew up in Hollywood as he beefed up his reputation as an actor in such films as What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?, Titanic (which established him as a full-fledged star), Gangs of New York, The Aviator, The Departed, Inception, Django Unchained and The Wolf of Wall Street.Perhaps one of the ultimate compliments to Leonardo’s ascent as an actor is that he became Martin Scorsese’s muse. The pair will collaborate for the sixth time in an adaptation of the crime story, The Devil in the White City.Asked what else he would like to achieve, Leonardo, who is a passionate environmentalist, replied, “There are a lot of things that I would wish for the world. I am not here to complain about anything because I have been incredibly fortunate. If I heard myself say, ‘I wish this or that,’ it would be nauseating.”