Is there still hope for a romantic relationship between Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet? We can dream. The longtime friends, both notoriously private, stepped out together for a special screening of Winslet’s biographical drama, Lee. Learn about their heartwarming reunion and unique Hollywood friendship.
DiCaprio and Winslet have supported each other’s projects since the ’90s when director James Cameron cast the budding actors in his 1997 blockbuster hit, Titanic. Although one could argue that Winslet had already made it big with 1994’s Heavenly Creatures and 1995’s Sense and Sensibility, Titanic skyrocketed her to world-renowned, forever fame. Leo, for his part, had already impressed critics with his roles in 1993’s What’s Eating Gilbert Grape and 1996’s Romeo + Juliet.
Twenty-seven years later, DiCaprio showed his support for Winslet at a special screening of Lee, her 2024 film eight years in the making. The drama tells the story of Lee Miller (Winslet), a model who enlists as a photographer to capture images of World War II for Vogue.
If Winslet and DiCaprio have one thing in common, it’s their intense dedication to their roles. At one point, Winslet funded the cast and crew’s salaries for two weeks due to a lack of funding. So far, Lee has received mixed reviews. With Rotten Tomatoes reporting, “Kate Winslet’s gripping performance in the title role helps elevate Lee beyond its disappointingly conventional biopic trappings.”
Winslet has grown thick skin after three decades in Hollywood. However, she may still appreciate DiCaprio‘s feedback regarding her movies and roles. The pair grew to love and respect each other filming Titanic, growing up in the spotlight together and apart. Leo was 23 and Kate was 22 when the epic romance became the highest-grossing film of all time.
Since then, DiCaprio and Winslet have reunited on the silver screen once, for Revolutionary Road. Directed by Winslet’s then-husband Sam Mendes, the romantic drama satisfied fans who had begged for an onscreen reunion between the pair since Titanic. Revolutionary Road was a box office and critical success, with DiCaprio and Winslet receiving praise. Winslet went on to win Best Actress at the 66th Golden Globe Awards.
Fans have shipped Leo and Kate for decades. DiCaprio has bounced from relationship to relationship, eventually garnering a reputation for (allegedly) only dating models in their twenties. The 50-year-old is currently dating 26-year-old Vittoria Ceretti.
For her part, Winslet is on her third marriage. The 49-year-old has a daughter, Mia, from her three-year marriage to English director Jim Threapleton. She shares a son, Joe, with her ex-husband Sam Mendes whom she was married to from 2003–11. Winslet married Richard Branson’s nephew, Edward Smith, in 2012. They have a son, Bear, who was born in 2013.
Winslet’s short break between Mendes and Smith gave fans hope. But the Ammonite star has always maintained that she and DiCaprio are friends and nothing more. In 2021, she told The Guardian, “He’s my friend, my really close friend. We’re bonded for life.”
Do they ever reflect on their life-changing experience filming Titanic? Winslet told Glamour UK, “Sometimes we do quote the odd Titanic line back and forth to each other. Because only we can, and we find it really funny.”
