5 Reasons Why Leonardo DiCaprio Should Win an Oscar in 2016

DiCaprio was always, first and foremost, a precocious talent. Since he’s become an iconic leading man now, it’s easy to forget that it’s almost always the prodigious talent first, combined with movie-star looks second, that adds up to a star with longevity, in the fickle world of showbusiness.

Leonardo DiCaprio at a press event to promote the Alejandro Inarritu's Oscar-nominated "The Revenant," in Mexico City, on Jan. 26, 2016. AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell

Leonardo DiCaprio’s been nominated for four Oscars, but hasn’t won one yet. Here’s a list of reasons why this should be his year.

Reason #1: Arnie

Ever see the movie DiCaprio exploded onto the scene with, in 1993, as Johnny Depp’s mentally-challenged little brother Arnie?

When I saw “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape?” as an already seasoned actor, I nonetheless fell straight into civilian thinking: “Well-well! Where'd they find that mentally-challenged boy for that role? He’s so perfect—and what a shame too because he’s rather a good-looking young man!”

Who’s retarded? Me. I was.

Arnie should have landed DiCaprio an immediate Oscar. More so than Dustin Hoffman’s “Rainman,” even. Arnie was a work of character-acting art. However, DiCaprio proved Robert Downey’s “Tropic Thunder” character’s rule about ruining your Oscar chances: “You never go full retard!” DiCaprio went “full retard,” and the result was one of the most beautiful characters to ever grace the silver screen. But no win.

And guess how he spoke to the pope? In Italian.