Leonardo DiCaprio circa 1993 and Sarah Jessica Parker, Bette Midler, Kathy Najimy in ‘Hocus Pocus’.Photo:Rose Hartman/Archive Photos/Getty, Disney/Kobal/Shutterstock
Rose Hartman/Archive Photos/Getty, Disney/Kobal/Shutterstock
In another world,Leonardo DiCapriocould have met the Sanderson sisters.
Hocus PocusdirectorKenny Ortegarecently toldEntertainment Weeklythat a young DiCaprio, now 48, read for the role of Max during casting for the 1993 Halloween-themed movie. Though, the film’s casting department knew he could not take the part.
“[My casting team] called me up and said, ‘We’re sending someone in, but you can’t have him,'” Ortega, 73, recalled. “They said, ‘We want you to know who he is, we want you to meet him, he’s agreed to come in to meet you, but he can’t do the role. He’s being offered a movie with[Robert] De NiroandWhat’s Eating Gilbert Grape.’ "
DiCaprio, who was 18 whenHocus Pocusreleased, did not read any lines during his meeting with Ortega,EWreported. While the role wound up going toOmri Katz, that one meeting with DiCaprio sold Ortega on the actor’s potential just before he broke out with his Oscar-nominated supporting role as Arnie inWhat’s Eating Gilbert Grape.
“He came in, and he was just amazing — so extraordinary and unique — he came and he was stressed,” Ortega told the outlet. “He said, ‘I feel bad that I’m here because I can’t do this, because I’m really focused on these other things,’ and I said, ‘Understandably.’ "
L-R: Vinessa Shaw, Thora Birch and Omri Katz in ‘Hocus Pocus’.Mary Evans/Ronald Grant/Everett
Mary Evans/Ronald Grant/Everett
Ortega continued, adding: “We shared a sandwich together. He was super cool. When he walked out, I called my casting agents and I said, ‘You’re murdering me, here.’ "
Despite Ortega’s early recognizance that DiCaprio was at the start of a successful acting career, the filmmaker maintained that Katz, 47, was perfect to leadHocus PocusoppositeBette Midler,Sarah Jessica ParkerandKathy Najimy’s trio of witches.
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“It was so clear to me that [DiCaprio] was so special, but I have to say, when Omri came in, there was something there that was just so perfect and that I feel, to this day, he delivered all that I could’ve hoped for in that role,” Ortega toldEW. “He was adorable.”
Leonardo DiCaprio.Michael Kovac/Getty
DiCaprio, meanwhile, has reunited with De Niro, 80, forMartin Scorsese’s new true-crime movie,Killers of the Flower Moon, which debuts in theaters Friday, Oct. 20.
source: people.com
