Leonardo DiCaprio finally wins best actor Oscar for The Revenant

Oscar-winnerLeonardoDiCaprioinTheRevenant.Photograph:KimberleyFrench/AP

(THE GUARDIAN) LeonardoDiCaprio’sportrayalofabetrayed19th-centuryfrontiersmanseekingrevengeinTheRevenanthaswonhimhisfirstAcademyAward,havingmissedoutonfourpreviousoccasions.

(PHOTO BY:Xinhua/Yang Lei)

The41-year-oldactorwasthefavouritetowinafterpickingupbothaGoldenGlobeandaBaftaforhisperformance.Thefilm,whichhaswonanumberofawardsatthisyear’sceremony,tellsthetruestoryofHughGlass,whobattledhiswaythroughthewildernessafterbeingleftfordead.

DiCapriobeatoutcompetitionfromlastyear’swinnerEddieRedmayneandMichaelFassbender.HehadpreviouslybeennominatedforhisworkinWhat’sEatingGilbertGrape?,TheAviator,BloodDiamondandTheWolfofWallStreet.

Heusedhisspeechtowarnabouttheeffectsofglobalwarming.“Climatechangeisrealandit’shappeningrightnow,”hesaid.“It’sthemosturgentthreataffectingourspecies.”Headded:“Letusnottakethisplanetforgranted.Idonottakethisnightforgranted.”

Theactor’scommitmenttotherolehadreceivedalotofattention.DiCapriowassaidtohaveeatenrawbisonliverandsleptinanimalcarcasses.ThefilmalsopickedupOscarsforbestcinematographyandbestdirectorforAlejandroGonzálezIñárritu.

Hehasanumberofprojectsintheoffingbutisyettoconfirmwhatnextrolewillbe.HeislooselyattachedtoworkagainwithMartinScorseseonthetruestoryofserialkillerHHHolmes,andisalsosettoproduceafilmabouttheVolkswagenemissionsscandal.