The 'Ted' star clarifies the so-called feud he had with the 'Titanic' actor in the 1990s, saying they 'became fast friends' after the discussion at the time.
- Jul 31, 2018
AceShowbiz - Mark Wahlberg has shed more light on the so-called feud he had with Leonardo DiCaprio in the 1990s.
The Academy Award-nominated actor recalled a heated discussion he had with the "Titanic" actor during a talk at the 2018 LEAP Foundation Conference in Los Angeles last week (begins July 23), in which Leo apparently questioned his ability to play a role in the 1995 movie "The Basketball Diaries".
While Mark insisted that the disagreement ultimately led to a strong working friendship, many believed it signalled animosity between the pair and dubbed the incident a "feud" - a claim the "Ted" star has since denied.
"It wasn't a disagreement," he told Extra TV. "It was just, like, I think we both had a specific opinion about each other, certainly. I was just, you know, as a rapper, I was just kinda out-there and loud and crazy and all this stuff, and it was a very serious movie and this very serious part, and so the director of the film (the late Scott Kalvert), he had made all my music videos, he felt like I was more than capable to play the part."
Referencing the movie as one of his earliest film roles following his initial success as a rapper in musical group Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch, the "Mile 22" star also explained how Leonardo's reservations were most likely warranted as he set out to prove himself as a serious actor.
He reiterated that his perseverance ultimately paid off and resulted in mutual respect between the pair, who went on to work on the Oscar-winning movie The Departed together in 2006.
"No one had seen me act in a film, so I had to really kinda just go out there and prove myself," the 47-year-old continued. "Once I finally got to the point where I was able to audition and read with him (Leonardo), then we just both kinda looked at each other, we were like, 'Wow!' We were literally out that night and we became fast friends."
