From a fugitive to a detective, Leonardo Dicaprio has managed to pull off each character with perfection. And the best part is, he is continuing to do so. If “Movie star” was a brand, DiCaprio would be the face of it. He has managed to be one of the greatest movie stars in the entire world. His acting skills are incredible, and this has gained him fans from all over the world.

He has worked with some of the best directors of our time, like Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Christopher Nolan, James Cameron, and many others. He has the art of giving life to his characters. And it’s his USP as well.

Here are the 35 best movies of Leonardo DiCaprio ranked. This is based on the performance of his movies, not his acting skills.

35. Critters 3 (1991)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Critters 3” (Credits: YouTube)

Critters 3 is the third installment of this movie franchise and DiCaprio’s film debut. This film features a corrupt landlord and his stepson, Josh, played by Leonardo. His tenant, Clifford, accidentally brings some Critter eggs home. These are aliens who want to kill and eat human flesh. This film didn’t impress a lot of people, and it is rated 4.4 on IMDb.

34. Poison Ivy (1992)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Poison Ivy” (Credits: IMDb)

Leonardo is featured in this erotic thriller movie, but only as an extra. The main character, Ivy, is played by Drew Barrymore. She is a mysterious woman who has an uncanny desire for a sexual relationship with her friend’s adopted father while planning to eliminate his wife from their lives. It scored 5.4 on IMDb.

33. This Boy’s Life (1993)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “This Boy’s Life” (Credits: IMDb)

In this film, DiCaprio plays the character of Tobias Wolff, aka Toby. His mother married Dwight, a decent man who at first looked like a decent man. Later they find out his true abusive nature as he starts to abuse Toby in every way possible. This film is loved by many people and rated 7.3 on IMDb.

32. What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” (Credits: IMDb)

Johnny Depp plays the main character in this film, and DiCaprio plays his differently-abled brother. It’s a story about a grocery store clerk who takes care of his obese mother and his brother. The sublime acting of a differently abled boy gained him the love of critics and his first Oscar nomination. It’s rated 7.7 on IMDb.

31. The Basketball Diaries (1995)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Basketball Diaries” (Credits: IMDb)

This film is based on Jim Carroll’s novel, where Leonardo plays the character of a high school basketball player who becomes a drug addict. This addiction leads him to commit crimes like robbery and slowly puts him into depression. Everyone appreciated DiCaprio’s acting, and it scored 7.3 on IMDb.

30. The Quick and the Dead (1995)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Quick and the Dead” (Credits: IMDb)

The film revolves around The Lady, a lady gunfighter who enters a dueling competition. She wants to avenge her father’s death. Gene Hackman plays John Herod, an outlaw who rules the town. And DiCaprio plays Fee Herod, who believes John is his father. This film scored 6.5 on IMDb.

29. Total Eclipse (1995)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Total Eclipse” (Credits: IMDb)

DiCaprio plays Rimbaud, a french poet who is in love with Verlaine. The main attraction of the film is Verlaine is 11 years older than Rimbaud. They tried to break the typical norms of society by being in a relationship like this. Although this film wasn’t much appreciated by critics. It scored 6.5 on IMDb.

28. Romeo + Juliet (1996)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Romeo + Juliet” (Credits: Movieclips)

In this film, DiCaprio plays the role of a teenage boy who falls in love with a girl, despite the conflict between their families. It is based on William Shakespeare’s widely renowned work, set in 90s America. This film got 6.7 on IMDb.

27. Marvin’s Room (1996)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Marvin’s Room” (Credits: IMDb)

This film is about a family with two sisters, Bessie and Lee. Lee has a mentally unstable son, which is played by Leonardo. This film shows how the tables turned as one of the sisters is diagnosed with leukemia. This film got 6.7 on IMDb.

26. Titanic (1997)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Titanic” (Credits: Paramount Movies)

Arguably the first film that gave him his worldwide stardom. He plays the role of Jack, who deliberately falls in love with Rose. This film shows the epic conclusion of their love story. It scored 7.8 on IMDb.

25. The Man in the Iron Mask (1998)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Man in the Iron Mask” (Credits: IMDb)

This movie is an adaption of Alexandre Dumas’s “The Three Musketeers.” This film revolves around four musketeers and their journey to find Man in the Iron Mask. This film was a big financial success and is rated 6.5 on IMDb.

24. Celebrity (1998)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Celebrity” (Credits: YouTube)

Leonardo appears as a guest appearance in this film. He is not more than 15 to 20 minutes in the film, but you can feel his impact after his departure from the film. This movie is rated 6.3 on IMDb.

23. The Beach (2000)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Beach” (Credits: IMDb)

The Beach is an adventure film starring Leonardo as Richard, a young American with a desire to reach a secret, uninhabited island. He is accompanied by a young French couple, Françoise and Étienne. This movie scored 6.6 on IMDb.

22. Don’s Plum (2001)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Don’s Plum” (Credits: IMDb)

Don’s Plum is a drama film starring Leonardo as one of the four friends featured in the film. They meet each other every Saturday night at a restaurant of the same name. The film is rated 5.6 on IMDb.

21. Catch Me If You Can (2002)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Catch Me If You Can” (Credits: Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers)

This Steven Spielberg masterpiece has two of the most versatile actors in Hollywood. Leonardo plays Frank William Abagnale Jr., and Tom Hanks plays Agent Carl Hanratty, an FBI Agent. The whole plot is based on a cat-and-mouse chase between a fugitive and a detective. The film won millions of hearts and is rated 8.1 on IMDb.

20. Gangs of New York (2002)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Gangs of New York” (Credits: IMDb)

This film is based on Herbert Asbury’s book “The Gangs of New York.” Directed by Martin Scorsese, Leonardo plays Amsterdam Vallon, the son of Priest Vallon. The plot revolves around Amsterdam and how he avenged his father’s death. This film got 7.5  on IMDb.

19. The Aviator (2004)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Aviator” (Credits: IMDb)

In this film, Leonardo plays Howard Hughes, a legendary director, businessman, and philanthropist. The film is based on his love and passion for aviation. This film scored 7.5 on IMDb.

18. The Departed (2006)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Departed” (Credits: IMDb)

This film is directed by Martin Scorsese, and this is the film that earned him his only Best Director award. Leonardo plays Billy Costigan Jr., a cop who has already broken and then goes underground. His role may not be that glamorous here, but this sure is one of his finest performances as an actor. This film is rated 8.5 on IMDb.

17. Blood Diamond (2006)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Blood Diamond” (Credits: Movieclips)

Directed by Edward M. Zwick, Leonardo plays Daniel Archer, a smuggler, and mercenary. This film tells the story of how Archer helps Vandy, who was kept in the same jail, escape and return to his family in exchange for a precious diamond. This film is rated 8.0 on IMDb.

16. The 11th Hour (2007)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The 11th Hour” (Credits: IMDb)

This is a documentary film produced and narrated by him himself. This film shows the great imminent dangers coming upon humanity all over the world. This film described the concepts of global warming, deforestation, etc., in detail and provided some likely solutions.

15. Body of Lies (2008)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Body of Lies” (Credits: IMDb)

Leonardo plays Roger Ferris, who is a CIA operative. He is in love with Aisha, who is a nurse, and has a dishonest boss, named Ed Hoffman. The film’s plot is very generic and forgettable. You can watch this for a quick thrill. This film is rated 7.0 on IMDb.

14. Revolutionary Road (2008)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Revolutionary Road” (Credits: Movieclips)

DiCaprio plays the role of Frank Wheeler, who is a dockworker and aspires to be a cashier someday in the future. His relationship with his wife, April Wheeler, is not that great. This film shows the ups and downs of their relationship and life. This film scored 7.3 on IMDb.

13. Shutter Island (2010)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Shutter Island” (Credits: Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers)

Leonardo plays a dual role in Martin Scorsese’s psychological thriller. His characters are Edward  Daniels and Andrew Laeddis. The movie’s plot rotates around these two characters, which have dramatic twists and turns in the course of the movie. It is rated 8.2 on IMDb.

12. Hubble (2010)

Image from “The Hubble” (Credits: Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers)

Hubble is a documentary film about the Hubble Space Telescope’s upgrade by a space shuttle. Leonardo narrated the whole documentary. It is included in the list because of his sublime style of narrating a story that has a magical effect on listeners. This film also has a very positive review from critics.

11. Inception (2010)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Inception” (Credits: Rotten Tomatoes Classic Trailers)

This is Christopher Nolan’s one of best works to date. And Leonardo has taken the character of Dom Cobb to a whole new level. Dom Cobb is a thief who enters people’s dreams and steals the deepest secrets his victims have. But it is no longer that this exceptional power had become the primary reason for his agonies as well. This film got a massive rating of 8.8 on IMDb.

10. J. Edgar (2011)

Leonardo DiCaprio in” J. Edgar” (Credits: Rotten Tomatoes Trailers)

This is a biographical film featured on the life of J. Edgar Hoover, an FBI director. Leonardo plays the lead role of J. Edgar in the movie. Although Leo’s acting was eminent, director Clint Eastwood hasn’t been able to use Leo’s full potential. He also failed to give DiCaprio the kind of support every actor needs in a film. The critics gave a mixed opinion of this film, and it scored 6.5 on IMDb.

9. Django Unchained (2012)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Django Unchained” (Credits: IMDb)

Yes, his popular laughing meme face comes from this film. Quentin Tarantino has tried to make a western action-adventure film starring Leonardo as Calvin J. Candie, a lousy monster-in-disguise. He forces his slaves to fight among them for his own selfish motives. What Leo did best with this character is he brought this strange geniality to him even after being so cruel in heart. This film got 8.4 on IMDb.

8. The Great Gatsby (2013)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Great Gatsby” (Credits: Rotten Tomatoes Coming Soon)

DiCaprio plays Jay Gatsby, formerly known as James Gatz, a millionaire who throws lavish parties at his house. His only wish is to reunite with his former love, Daisy. After many years of different characters, we’ve finally seen the vintage romantic Leo is the screens. This film scored 7.2 on IMDb.

7. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Wolf of Wall Street” (Credits: Paramount Pictures)

In the Martin Scorsese-directed biographical, Leonardo plays the character of Jordan Belfort. He is an example of rags to riches. He started from being a door-to-door salesman to becoming one of the richest stockbrokers in America. He built his empire on lies and frauds, and that became the demise of him and his life. The character is played exceptionally well by Leo, and it’s a must-watch for everyone at least once. This has scored 8.2 on IMDb.

6. The Revenant (2015)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Revenant” (Credits: 20th Century Studios)

This is the film that has finally given Leo his much-awaited Oscar. Leo plays the character of Hugh Glass, who has to fight bears, and eat raw meat in an extremely cold environment, just to survive. The director Alejandro González Iñárritu did an excellent job in using Leo’s acting skills. He has created an immersive experience for the viewers, which we would want from this kind of movie. This scored 8.0 on IMDb.

5. The Audition (2015)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “The Audition” (Credits: IMDb)

Directed by Martin Scorsese, this film is mainly a promotion for Studio City (Macau) Resort and Casino. It starred both De Niro and DiCaprio. The plot revolves around them competing for a role in Scorsese’s next film.

4. Before the Flood (2016)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Before the Flood” (Credits: IMDb)

It is a documentary film on climate change. It’s Leo’s third time as a narrator in a film, and as always, he did a sublime job in that. He visited many regions of the earth to understand the impact of global warming. He also watches many archive footages regarding this and comments about these.

3. Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” (Credits: IMDb)

In this film, Leo plays the character of Rick Dalton, the star of the 1950s TV series “Bounty Law.” The film shows his insecurities about not being relevant anymore. And Leo has perfectly conveyed the message to us. This film got a rating of 7.6 on IMDb.

2. Ice on Fire (2019)

Image from “Ice on Fire” (Credits: HBO)

Another documentary film where we see Leo as the narrator. This film is based on explaining the problems regarding the arctic methane release. They have also talked about a new technology that can reverse the process of Global Warming, giving humanity another chance. This film premiered at the Cannes Film Festival and received many positive reviews.

1. Don’t Look Up (2021)

Leonardo DiCaprio in “Don’t Look Up” (Credits: Netflix)

The latest of Leonardo, Don’t Look Up, is a dark comedy film directed by Adam McKay. Leo plays Dr. Randall Mindy, a professor of astronomy. He warned his nation of an incoming comet collision, for which he has gained a boost in his career. He wanted to convey the message of the massive dangers of climate change and gives a monologue in the climax. This film got an IMDb rating of 7.2.