Ethan Hawke is grateful that he did not land Leonardo DiCaprio’s breakthrough role as Jack Dawson in Titanic because he does not believe he would have handled the success.
The Dead Poets Society star, 54, auditioned for the 1997 movie, which went on to break records and secure 11 Oscars including for Best Picture and Best Director.
Hawke was ultimately unsuccessful as the role was given to a 21-year-old DiCaprio. However, the actor said he believes it was the right decision in hindsight.
“I don’t think I would have handled that success as well as Leo,” he told GQ magazine. “He was a f***ing Beatle.”
The actor said he never self-identified as a “movie star” and found tabloid scrutiny uncomfortable in contrast to DiCaprio.
Reflecting on the attention he and his ex-wife Uma Thurman received when they began dating after meeting on the set of Gattaca (1997), he said of the fame: “It’s humiliating. It’s almost humiliating even when they’re saying positive things.”
Hawke said of his subsequent career: “I never self-identified as a ‘movie star’. I was allergic to that. Having a trademark by my name and making a million dollars – that wasn’t part of my dream.”
DiCaprio went on to become a household name after the release of James Cameron’s Titanic, and has received six Oscar nominations in total. He eventually won Best Actor his role in survival thriller The Revenant in 2016.
Earlier this year, the actor said his “biggest regret” was turning down the opportunity to star in Boogie Nights, Paul Thomas Anderson’s 1997 drama about the porn industry. However, this freed him up to star in Titanic.
Hawke has starred in the Before trilogy alongside Julie Delpy and secured an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor for his role opposite Denzel Washington in Training Day in 2002 and for his role in coming-of-age drama Boyhood in 2015.
He is due to star in horror sequel Black Phone 2 and in Richard Linklater’s forthcoming film, Blue Moon. He will also star in forthcoming TV series, The Lowdown, loosely inspired by the life of citizen journalist and activist Lee Roy Chapman.
