Quotes from Leonardo DiCaprio

I got attention by being funny at school, pretending to be retarded, and jumping around with a deformed hand.

I've been a pretty lucky man.

The first kiss I had was the most disgusting thing in my life. The girl injected about a pound of saliva into my mouth, and when I walked away I had to spit it all out.

If you can do what you do best and be happy, you're further along in life than most people.

I like to be able to play a character and act out a lot of things which I can't or don't do in my normal everyday life.

I had a period when I was sixteen where I started to get a big head. I was going through puberty, and I was nominated for an Academy Award. My head got inflated. My friends were the real ones who said, 'You're acting different.' But the truth is that I don't need that, because I don't get out of hand.

I'm just starting to scratch the surface of what really makes me happy and it's taken me a while to admit that acting like a little child and being a jerk and a punk is fun.

A great white jumped into my cage when I was diving in South Africa. Half its body was in the cage, and it was snapping at me.

I have a production company,; I have a foundation. I have a lot of responsibilities. Not family - just a lot of responsibilities.

I don't think I ever expected anything like an Oscar ever, to tell you the truth. That is not my motivation when I do these roles. I really am motivated by being able to work with great people and create a body of work that I can look back and be proud of.

You have to enjoy life in the process. It may sound corny, but it's true. At the end of the day, we can't always achieve everything that we dream of but you do have to enjoy life in the process.

I've always been spontaneous and outgoing... I've tried lots of things so I've got some good life experiences, which is great 'cause it means I've got lots of material to work with as an actor.

I have learned from my experiences in this industry that there is absolutely no way to control people's opinions on your performance in your movie. You go out there, promote your film and hope people like the work you did.

Don't think for a moment that I'm really like any of the characters I've played. I'm not. That's why it's called 'acting'.

I did imitations of anyone who came to my parents' house, and that was my identity at school - if there were ten minutes to lunch, and the teacher was done with the lesson, he'd say, 'Okay, Leo, get up there and do something.'

I really don't know what I'm doing... I don't. It's terrible. I go in there and I learn how to be like the character and do the best I can, and that's all I really do.

I figure life's a gift and I don't intend on wasting it. You don't know what hand your gonna get dealt next. You learn to take life as it comes at you... to make each day count.

When you are given an opportunity to make a film like 'Body of Lies' - and I would put 'Blood Diamond' in the same category - of course you jump at these opportunities.

I love science fiction, but I have a hard time feeling for characters in a galaxy far away. Choosing movies is the one thing in my life where there's no compromising.

As far as my own dreams, I'm not a big dreamer, I think obviously we suppress things in life, emotions and thoughts, and we should wake up and look at that.

My love of performing goes way back. My mom got me on 'Romper Room' when I was five - it was my favorite show. But they couldn't control me. I would run up and smack the camera, and I'd jump around and do my little flips and routines. I wish I could get that tape now.

I think I will always feel like an outsider.

There are a lot of directors I'd still love to work with. Paul Thomas Anderson is someone I'd love to work with. I think Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu is very talented. Ang Lee is very talented. I mean, there are a lot of people. There are many great directors out there.

Sometimes I wonder will God ever forgive us for what we've done to each other? Then I look around and I realize God left this place a long time ago.