Leonardo DiCaprio's Mom Proves She's His Biggest Fan

Tatiana Tenreyro
·2 min read
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There's no bigger Leonardo DiCaprio fan than his mom, Irmelin Indenbirken.

Variety's Co-Editor-in-Chief Ramin Setoodeh shared a clip of DiCaprio's mom proudly taking a video of a painting of her son being auctioned off for over €1 million at the amfAR Gala in Cannes. The portrait was made by English painter Damien Hirst.

Setoodeh detailed the moment in the gala further in his article, writing, "At around midnight, the charity devoted to raising money for AIDS research unveiled a one-of-a-kind portrait of DiCaprio. Two men rolled the large canvas of art onstage, as if they were handling the Mona Lisa. This was not a gag — it was, in fact, actually valuable."

He continued, "According to the auctioneer, Damien Hirst had been commissioned to paint the Titanic star. Then, some time later, the painting was sold to a private collector, who had donated it back to amfAR to give someone else the opportunity to hang Leo in their living room. As the bids flew, DiCaprio's mom stood up with her phone to film all the rich people fighting over a portrait of her son. She looked ecstatic as the final bid was called. Sold! For $1.3 million."

DiCaprio has always had a close bond with his mom, who raised him as a single mother. When he won his first Best Actor BAFTA in 2016, he took the opportunity to honor his mom in his acceptance speech.

"I would not be standing up here if it wasn't for this person. I didn't grow up in a life of privilege. I grew up in a very rough neighborhood in east Los Angeles," he said. "This woman drove me three hours a day to a different school to show me a different opportunity. It's her birthday today. Mom, happy birthday. I love you very much."

Indenbirken has often been her son's date for major events and stood by him since the beginning of his career. The Oscar winner's biographer told the Daily Mail that DiCaprio "wants to repay [Inderbirken] for all the sacrifices she made when he was growing up. But it runs deeper than that. They are extremely close."