Leonardo DiCaprio Says Original Films Are Harder To Make But ‘Movies Still Matter – Not Content’

Leonardo DiCaprio may have missed the Palm Springs International Film Awards in person, but his message landed loudly anyway.

The actor, honoured with the Desert Palm Achievement Award for his role in Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After Another, used a recorded video to make a pointed case for original cinema at a time when the industry feels increasingly driven by algorithms.

DiCaprio was unable to attend due to flight restrictions linked to political unrest in Venezuela, leaving him stranded on the US East Coast, but he took a moment to acknowledge the crowd and the significance of the honour.

“I’m stuck on the East Coast. I wish I was there to celebrate with all of you. I’m truly grateful to be a part of it even from the distance.”

From there, DiCaprio turned his focus to Anderson and the importance of creative risk.

“Thank you for inviting all of us into something bold and original, for never settling and for trusting the process enough to let the work become what it needed to be.”

Reflecting on where his love of film began, DiCaprio traced it back to childhood trips with his father to LA’s Vista Theater, a venue that still houses one of the last VistaVision projectors in the world.

“It was my neighborhood theater, it was where I first felt the power of cinema… watching something bigger than myself, I realized how deeply movies can affect all of us.”

That same format played a key role in One Battle After Another, DiCaprio explained the decision to shoot on VistaVision was about more than nostalgia.

“Not out of nostalgia, but out of a belief, a belief in scale and texture, and in the idea that movies are still meant to be experienced together in a theater.”

Closing statement

He closed with a statement that felt aimed squarely at the modern entertainment landscape:

“Right now, that belief matters more than ever. Original films are harder to make and harder to protect, but movies still matter. Not content, but cinema. Stories made by people meant to be shared in a dark room in a communal experience.”

In an era dominated by franchises and endless scrolls, DiCaprio’s stance was clear, cinema isn’t just another content stream and it’s worth fighting for.