Leo DiCaprio, 50, on dating as an older man: 'You have to risk being honest and having things fall apart because there's no time to waste' - after he was criticised for dating a string of under 25 year old models

Daily Mail​

2 days ago

Leo DiCaprio reflected on dating as an older man and admitted that he has to 'risk being honest because there is no time to waste.'
Speaking in a new interview, the actor, 50, discussed having 'things fall apart' after he received criticism for dating a string of glamorous models and actresses - all of whom were aged 25 or under.
As he covered Esquire UK 's Autumn issue Leo, look ahead towards the 'next few decades' with 'much more life behind than ahead of you.'
He has been romantically linked to model Vittoria Ceretti, 27, since August 2023 but prior to their relationship, in 2022 he famously split from Camila Morrone after five years together just a month after she turned 25.
Speaking candidly in the unfiltered interview, Leo said: 'Turning 50 creates a feeling like you have a desire to just be more honest and not waste your time.
'I can only imagine how the next few decades are going to progress. I look at my mother, for example, and she just says exactly what she thinks and wastes no time. She spends no time trying to fake it.'
Reflecting on dating, he detailed the importance of being upfront, and explained: 'Being more upfront and risking having things fall apart or risking the disagreements or risking going your separate ways from any type of relationship in life.
'The personal, the professional — it's that you don't want to waste your time any more.
'You have to just be much more upfront. It's almost a responsibility, because much more of your life is behind you than it is ahead of you.'
Leo has always hit headlines with his relationships, famously dating model Gisele Bundchen for five years starting when she was 18, to a five-year romance with Bar Refaeli that ended when she turned 25.
The Hollywood star had also been linked to Gigi Hadid after they fuelled romance speculation in September 2022.
He was first linked to the model just weeks after his split from then-girlfriend Camila Morrone.
But rumours were quickly squashed in February 2023, as a source told DailyMail.com, 'Leo is very single right now and he is not keen on the hype suggesting that he is seeking out these very young women.'
The insider continued: 'He is looking for something more mature in the relationship department. It is just ridiculous because he cannot go anywhere without being linked to the youngest beautiful woman there.'
'He wants to ditch this image once and for all and he is really bothered that this continues to follow him,' they added.
For years now, Leo has found himself the butt of many a dating joke - as well as facing furious backlash over his apparent refusal to woo a woman who was over the age of 25.
The furious speculation about his dating habits has been given much fuel over the years; Leo split with Camila just weeks after she hit the 25 milestone - and was then photographed with a bevy of young models, including 25-year-old Victoria Lamas and 19-year-old Eden Polani.
Leo faced bitter backlash over the alleged romance with Eden - who is 29 years his junior - prompting an insider to issue a vehement denial that there was anything romantic between them.
'They were seated next to each other at a music-listening party,' the insider told DailyMail.com at the time. 'There were a number of people at that event.'
The intrigue around Leo's dating habits dates back decades after he was catapulted to stardom following a string of leading man roles in movies like 1996's Romeo + Juliet and 1997's Titanic.
Two years after the release of Titanic, the actor - who was 24 at the time - began dating then-18-year-old supermodel Gisele Bundchen, future ex-wife of NFL legend Tom Brady.
Being in the under 25 club himself, at the time, it was not really an issue. DiCaprio flaunted his love for Bundchen on countless red carpets during their five-year relationship and they seemed like the perfect pairing.
In 2004, when Bundchen was 23 years old, the two broke up.
In 2005, DiCaprio jumped into another five-year romance with supermodel Bar Refaeli, who was 20 when they started seeing each other. Every detail of their long relationship was extensively covered, and many believed, at the time, that DiCaprio had met his soulmate.
However, when Refaeli turned 25 years old in 2010, the two broke up - thus beginning an apparent dating pattern that would follow Leo for the next 13 years.
After spending a decade in two long-term romances, DiCaprio had a series of short flings with famous women who were all under 25.
In 2011, DiCaprio dated Gossip Girl beauty Blake Lively, who was 23 at the time. The following year, in 2012, DiCaprio got together with 22-year-old model Erin Heatherton, which only lasted a few months.
DiCaprio then moved on with another 22-year-old - German model Toni Garrn - who he split with after she turned 24 in 2014.
In 2015, he romanced Baywatch beauty Kelly Rohrbach, who was 25 at the time. That ended before she turned 26 years old. After his relationship with Rohrbach ended, DiCaprio jumped into another romance in 2016 with 24-year-old actress Nina Agdal. That ended two years later, in 2018, when Agdal was 25 years old.
In 2018, DiCaprio fell hard for model Camila. At the start of their relationship, Leonardo was 43, while she was just 20.
However, the age gap did not appear to be an issue - and for a while it seemed as though Leo had finally found the woman of his dreams.
Then, just one month after Camila turned 25, the pair's fairytale romance came to an end.
After his five-year relationship with the actress ended, Leo finally broke his 'under 25' pattern when he started seeing supermodel Gigi Hadid, who was 27 at the time.
But their widely publicized fling ended a few months later, in December 2022. Although it did not workout, the source says that they are 'still friends.'
Vittoria and Leo are said to have met at the 2023 Cannes Film Festival, where his Martin Scorsese movie Killers Of The Flower Moon was premiering.
They were first linked in the August of that year, after a flurry of rumors that had connected Leo to Vittoria's fellow supermodel Gigi.
Over the course of their time together, Vittoria has been seen on occasion with a ring on her wedding finger, but sources have insisted she and Leo are not engaged.
Vittoria was previously married from 2020 until 2023 to the Italian DJ Matteo Milleri, who is part of the Berlin-based duo Tale of Us.
The Autumn issue of Esquire UK is out on 14 August
Leonardo DiCaprio's Dating History
The Django Unchained star has famously made a habit of never dating any woman over the age of 25.
GISELE BUNDCHEN (1999-2004)
Leo's first high-profile relationship was with the Brazilian model, who was 20 when the pair hooked up. She broke off the relationship five years later at the age of 25.
BAR REFAELI (2005-2010)
The actor's relationship with Bar Refaeli ended after 5 years of dating - coincidentally the same time the Israeli model turned 25.
BLAKE LIVELY (2011)
The current wife of Ryan Reynolds dated Leo for just one year - when she was 23.
ERIN HEATHERTON (2012)
The Victoria's Secret Angel alum was just 22 when she dated DiCaprio in 2012.
TONI GARRN (2013-2014)
German-born model Garrn was just 21 when she and Leo broke up after two years of dating.
KELLY ROHRBACH (2015)
The Baywatch reboot star was 25 when she and DiCaprio dated from June until around December of 2015, with the break alleged to be a mutual decision
NINA AGDAL (2016-2017)
Things ended between Leo and the Danish swimsuit model after she hit 25 in 2017.
CAMILA MORRONE (2017–2022)
Leo and the model-turned-actress began dating just months after his split from Nina Agdal. The were reported to be more serious than ever at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, but the two reportedly split over the summer of 2022.
GIGI HADID (SEPTEMBER 2022 - DECEMBER 2022)
Following his August split from Morrone, it was reported that Leo had his eyes on model Gigi Hadid. The pair were seen hanging at NYC hotspots but the romance seemingly fizzled out in December.
VICTORIA LAMAS (DECEMBER 2022)
Leo was previously romantically linked to model/actress Victoria Lamas, who happens to be the daughter of actor Lorenzo Lamas. The pair were spotted hanging in Hollywood in late December and reportedly rang in the New Year together.
VITTORIA CERETTI (MAY 2023)