Leonardo Di Caprio has been talking about forthcoming film The Great Gatsby, going into detail with his relationship with director Baz Luhrmann – who made him a star aged 18 by putting him in Romeo & Juliet – the pressure of taking on such a hugely influential novel in the 1927 F. Scott Fitzgerald tome, and how he got on with his co-star Carey Mulligan.

The Great GatsbyLeonardo Dicaprio in The Great Gatsby

"Baz and I have remained friends ever since I was 18 years old…We always talked about working together again…” Di Caprio said of his director, going on to praise him: “He came to me and handed me a first edition of The Great Gatsby and said this is one of my life's passions. I have to do it. He's never been afraid to tackle great literature and has this intense desire to put up on screen, great, intense powerful stories. He's a bold filmmaker.”

The Great GatsbyToby Maguire In The Great Gatsby

He certainly had to be bold to take on such a challenge, with the actor accepting the huge statute of the original book. "A novel like this that is so beloved, such a classic piece of American literature is intimidating in its own right," he said. Of Mulligan, he called her one of the best actresses of our generation, commenting “We met a lot of different actresses for the coveted role and she was able to manifest the complexity that is Daisy Buchanan. Carey just came in and really blew us away in the reading and as soon as she left I said to Baz, 'wow I guess we've seen one of the great actresses of our generation,' and we hired her on the spot." The film comes out in the USA on May 10th.

Check out The Great Gatsby trailer