Although his acting career is known as a huge success, even Leonardo DiCaprio has dealt with some hard times. Thankfully, fellow Hollywood star Sharon Stone was quick to help the Titanic star no questions asked. 

During a recent interview with E! News, Leonardo DiCaprio spoke about how grateful he has been for Stone after she paid his salary on the 1995 Western film The Quick and the Dead after the studio refused to hire him. 

“I’ve thanked her many times,” the actor declared. “I don’t know if I sent her an actual, physical thank-you gift, but I cannot thank her enough.”

Leonardo DiCaprio further described Stone as simply amazing for what she did for him and for Russell Crowe. He noted that the actress saw his work in the 1993 film What’s Eating Gilbert Grape and Crowe in the 1992 movie Romper Stomper. She wanted them both in The Quick and the Dead. 

“She said, ‘These are the two actors I want to work with,’” DiCaprio told the media outlet. “It’s incredible. She’s been a huge champion of cinema and giving other actors opportunities, so I’m very thankful.” 

Directed by Sam Raimi, The Quick and the Dead follows a female gunfighter as she returns to a frontier town where a dueling tournament is being held. She enters the tournament to avenge the death of her father. 

Sharon Stone Opened Up About Helping Leonardo DiCaprio in her 2021 Book ‘The Beauty of Living Twice’

Sharon Stone notably opened up about helping DiCaprio in her 2021 book The Beauty of Living Twice. She was not only starring in The Quick and the Dead, but she also produced the film.

“This kid named Leonardo DiCaprio was the only one who nailed the audition,” Stone wrote, per Insider. “In my opinion: He was the only one who came in and cried, begging his father to love him as he died in the scene.”

However, Stone explained the studio wasn’t on board with DiCaprio and wanted to case someone else. Stone stated she refused to allow that to happen. “’Why an unknown, Sharon, why are you always shooting yourself in the foot?’” she recalled. “The studio said if I wanted him so much, I could pay him out of my own salary. So I did.” 

Along with DiCaprio, Stone also wrote that she fought for Raimi to direct the film. The studio originally thought Raimi was a “D-movie director” due to his films Army of Darkness and The Evil Dead being low-budget films. 

Eventually, Stone told the studio that Raimi would work nearly for free as an enticement. That was when he was hired for the production.