Leonardo DiCaprio reunites with Titanic costar Kate Winslet: 'One of the great talents of my generation'

Perhaps the most beloved on-screen pairing of the last 30 years has come together again.

Leonardo DiCaprio took the stage before a screening of Kate Winslet's new film Lee last night to introduce his Titanic costar.

"Kate Winslet has dedicated herself to the film and to honoring Lee's legacy for over the course of nine years," he began. "I remember her speaking about this to me personally. This has been a massive passion project for her, and it's a journey that speaks to the depth of Kate's passion and her dedication to telling stories that need to be remembered."

Lee tells the life story of British WWII photographer Lee Miller. Before the screening, DiCaprio expressed hope that "everyone bears witness to a film that captures not only the complexity of Lee's life, but also the emotional weight of what it means to share the truth no matter how painful. Kate, my dear friend, your work in this film has been nothing short of transformative. I continue to be awestruck, I continue to admire your strength, your integrity, your talent, and your passion to every single project that you create. So without further ado, one of the great talents of my generation, the one and only Kate Winslet."

Winslet was visibly emotional when she received the microphone from DiCaprio and took the stage. "I cant even look at Leo now or else I'll cry," she said.

Lee premiered last year at the Toronto International Film Festival. It was released this past September, and, as is evident from DiCaprio's glowing introduction of Winslet, the actress is still committed enough to the project to host special screenings and invite her famous friends.

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"I can't tell you what it means to me. Making this film for me was really about people showing up with good grace and being willing to support me telling this story, a story that could have been hidden from view forever," Winslet said.

Lee was the passion project of a community of creative dynamos, including Winslet; director Ellen Kuras (the cinematographer behind I Shot Andy Warhol and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind); screenwriters Liz Hannah (The Post), John Collee (Happy Feet), and the fashion editor Marion Hume; and source biography author Antony Penrose, Miller's son.

DiCaprio summed up Miller's incredible life story with poetic concision before yesterday's screening, calling her "a pioneering photographer and journalist who not only captured some of the most harrowing images of WWII, but also served as the fierce witness to history's bleakest moments."

"Employed by British Vogue," he continued, "Miller documented the horrors of the concentration camps, and the devastation of Europe that readers did not always see. The women, the children, and the missing. She dug through the cracks, she shined a light in the darkest corners, and she kept her eyes open to some of the most horrendous images of WWII."

DiCaprio and Winslet first joined forces for Titanic, James Cameron's seismic smash hit that, ironically, hasn't been sunk from the box office all-timers list since its 1997 premiere. Cameron has since added two films to the list of the five highest-grossing films in box office history: Avatar and its sequel, The Way of Water.

Titanic transformed the careers of both of its stars, making them enduringly bankable enough to scour up financing for passion projects like Lee or the DiCaprio-produced climate change documentaries Before the Flood and Ice on Fire. The pair reteamed in 2008 for Revolutionary Road, and remain supportive of each other's careers.