One of the best actors in the industry meets with the most important religious icon in the world.

The Hollywood playboy, who is more often seen in the company of high-fashion icons, pop stars or A-list directors, departed from his party-boy reputation and focused on more important issues this time. Last Thursday, Leonardo DiCaprio met with Pope Francis to discuss prevalent environmental issues. During the 15-minute meeting, the pair reportedly discussed their shared interest in environmental issues. Leonardo also reportedly showed off his heritage by thanking the religious leader in Italian as well as handing over a donation from his charity foundation for the Pope.

According to the actor's rep, the duo focused on how they could "work together to address the immediate need for major action to stop the devastating impacts of climate change from leaving permanent scars on our planet,". DiCaprio further shares, "As a child I didn't quite understand what it all meant, but through my child's eyes it represented a planet — the utopia that we'd been given, the overpopulation, excess. And in the third panel we see a blackened sky that represents so much to me of what's going in the environment today.

Apparently, The Revenant star has worked for years to minimize climate change and the Pope's 2015 encyclical was praised by environmentalists for lamenting climate change since these groups calling for a departure from coal and other fossil fuels and seeking out greener energy sources have been constant. Francis echoed those sentiments when addressing the United Nations General Assembly back in September.

The actor is infamous for never bagging an Oscar but he definitely won the hearts of environmentalists alike. In July, DiCaprio's namesake foundation donated $15 million in grants to a wide range of sustainability organizations. Way to go, Leo!

#y101 #alwaysfirst #otp