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Last Update
- June 30th, 2003
Christian Bale
vs. Leo DiCaprio!
TV Guide, Daniel R. Coleridge, July, 2002.
For years,
we've heard buzz of professional rivalry between Christian Bale
and Leonardo DiCaprio. Recall that Bale nearly lost American Psycho
to DiCaprio, until the Titanic star passed on playing serial killer
Patrick Bateman. More recent gossip had Leo up for Bale's leading
part in this year's sci-fi thriller Equilibrium. Are these actors
at war?
"To be
honest, it's pushing it a little bit to say we're in competition
for roles," Bale chuckles to TV Guide Online. "I have
to accept the fact that [DiCaprio] has a vast choice compared
to me. Absolutely, he does. I have no 'competition' with him on
that level whatsoever.
"He was
interested in American Psycho," Bale acknowledges. "Well,
you know what? He's a smart guy. He should be; it's a great script.
But that's where it ends. I've met him a couple of times — we
got on just fine. We almost worked together! I would love to say
that we're in competition constantly, but I think he's a little
bit more in demand."
Hmm... that
may change if Leo's Gangs of New York shipwrecks like The Beach
did. Meanwhile, our fave Christian soldier battles fire-breathing
dragons — and Matthew McConaughey! — in Reign of Fire (opening
July 12). Bale admits he and the Wedding Planner star really pumped
iron to play dragonslayers — and also were coated with dirt and
spritzed to sweaty, sinewy perfection by studio stylists.
Their fistfight
— before their characters join forces against the world's worst
case of chronic halitosis — was real, Bale insists. "Matthew
and I looked at each other and went, 'Let's make it as dirty as
possible and also let's really go for it,'" he explains.
"Matthew headbutted me and I ended up with a huge welt above
my left eye. Absolutely real."
Surprisingly,
all that bonafide bruising didn't lead to serious setside tensions.
"I hit the deck after he headbutted me," Bale recalls.
"I stood right back up, I got in a genuine punch to get him
back and we kept on going and played out the whole scene. At the
end of it, I was fine; I wanted to know that he was alright. I'm
very happy that's the shot that's in the movie. There's no faking
it whatsoever."
Source - www.omnileonardo.com
