Leonardo DiCaprio has paid heartfelt tribute to Pope Francis following the pontiff’s death at age 88.
The Oscar winner, 50, took to social media Monday to pay his respects by sharing a series of photos from their 2016 meeting at the Vatican.
The “Inception” actor recalled the pair discussing the urgency of climate change for his documentary “Before the Flood,” which was released later that year.
“Pope Francis was a transformational leader — not only for the Catholic Church, but also for environmental reform and activism,” the actor wrote on Instagram.
“He demonstrated a deep and unwavering commitment to environmental stewardship, most notably through his groundbreaking 2015 encyclical Laudato Si’,” DiCaprio wrote, referencing a letter His Holiness had sent to churches around the world in 2015.
“This powerful document served as a clarion call for a fundamental shift in how we relate to the planet,” added the actor, who has long been an outspoken advocate for environmental issues.
DiCaprio further highlighted the Pope’s efforts in urging “individuals, communities, institutions, and world leaders to unite in caring for our common home,” before recalling their 2016 meeting.
“I had the honor of sitting down with Pope Francis for a conversation on the urgent need to address climate change,” he wrote. “That experience was enlightening, deeply moving and thought provoking.”
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The “Wolf of Wall Street” actor described Pope Francis “one of the most extraordinary spiritual leaders of our time.”
“His legacy will continue to inspire generations of environmentalists around the world. May he rest in peace,” he added.
DiCaprio has long been an environmentalist, establishing he Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation in 1998 at just 24 years old.
It comes as the actor’s longtime Hollywood collaborator, filmmaker Martin Scorsese, also paid tribute to the late Pope.
“There is so much that can be said about the significance of Pope Francis and everything he meant to the world, to the church, to the papacy. I will leave that to others. He was, in every way, a remarkable human being. He acknowledged his own failings. He radiated wisdom,” the legendary director told Variety.
“He radiated goodness. He had an ironclad commitment to the good. He knew in his soul that ignorance was a terrible plague on humanity. So he never stopped learning. And he never stopped enlightening. And, he embraced, preached and practiced forgiveness. Universal and constant forgiveness.”
“The loss for me runs deep — I was lucky enough to know him, and I will miss his presence and his warmth. The loss for the world is immense. But he left a light behind, and it can never be extinguished,” he said, calling the pontiff a “remarkable human being.”
