John C. Reilly actually tried to convince Leonardo DiCaprio to give up Titanic to star in Boogie Nights.
Speaking with Ted Danson on the "Where Everybody Knows Your Name" podcast this week, Reilly explained that he would have loved to see DiCaprio in the 1997 film "Boogie Nights." He recalled telling the young actor that he "shouldn't pass up this opportunity" to work with director Paul Thomas Anderson.
«"Before Mark was offered this movie, Paul really wanted Leo DiCaprio to play him," Reilly said. "And I'd already done What's Eating Gilbert Grape with Mary [Steenburgen] and Leo, and I knew Leo. I met him when he was 17. And I said, 'Give me this job, Paul. I'm going to talk this guy into doing your movie. I've known him since I was a kid.'".
He added: "I sat down with him on Hillhurst Street in Silver Lake and said, 'Listen, Leo, let me tell you something. The movie Titanic is about a ship that's sinking. Everybody knows the ship is sinking! Nobody's going to care who's on board.'".
In Danson's podcast, Reilly also revealed that while Boogie Nights was a cultural hit, the film generated industry buzz because it was a story about the porn industry. This made agents wary.
«"At the time we were trying to make Boogie Nights, doing porn was taboo," Reilly said. "It's hard to even imagine now, as you probably remember. All these actors and their managers and agents were like, 'Porn? Whoa, whoa, man. No. No.' And there's a penis in the movie! Everyone was like, 'No, no, no, no.'".
DiCaprio stayed with Titanic, and it paid off. The film became one of the highest-grossing films of all time, and James Cameron's film topped the list of the highest-grossing films of all time for many years. However, DiCaprio admitted that missing out on the role of Dirk Diggler—which ultimately went to Mark Wahlberg—was one of the biggest regrets of his career.
«"My biggest regret is not being in Boogie Nights," DiCaprio said in an interview last August. "It was the preeminent film of my generation. I can't imagine anyone else in it except Mark [Wahlberg]. When I finally saw it, I just thought it was a masterpiece.".
The article "John C. Reilly Tried to Talk Leonardo DiCaprio Out of 'Titanic' for 'Boogie Nights': 'Nobody Would Care Who's on Board' | Video" first appeared on TheWrap.