Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained was already packed with unforgettable moments, but one of the most talked-about scenes in the entire film wasn’t in the script – it came at the cost of Leonardo DiCaprio’s literal blood.
Released in 2012, Django Unchained was a bold, blood-soaked blend of western and historical films, earning over $420 million worldwide and securing multiple Academy Awards.
Jamie Foxx starred as the freed slave-turned-bounty-hunter Django, but in true Tarantino fashion, much of the film’s electricity came from its villains – including DiCaprio’s despicable Calvin Candie.
Candie, a Southern plantation owner with a violent obsession for craniums and power, was one of the darkest characters DiCaprio had ever played. And in one pivotal scene, he brought him to life in a way no one on set expected.
Mid-monologue, while delivering a tense dinner-table intimidating speech, DiCaprio slammed his hand down on a table – smashing a glass and slicing his palm open.
But instead of breaking character or halting the scene, DiCaprio – now bleeding heavily – pressed on with the take.
He continued Candie’s speech, and at one point even smeared the character’s blood – now having his own replaced for fake fluid for health-related reasons – on co-star Kerry Washington’s face, adding a shockingly visceral intensity to an already uncomfortable scene.
Tarantino is known for his stylised violence and sharp dialogue, but even he hadn’t written this. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, DiCaprio later revealed that he was given a standing ovation on set when the take wrapped, and detailed: “My hand started really pouring blood all over the table”.
“Maybe they thought it was done with special effects. I wanted to keep going. It was more interesting to watch Quentin’s and Jamie’s reaction off-camera than to look at my hand”. Though the production filmed alternate versions just in case, the original injury take made it to the final cut.
To this day, when talking about the scene, audiences praise not only DiCaprio’s professionalism, but also the other actors’ ability to stay on character.
One fan wrote on Reddit: “I think the other real unspoken awesome in this scene is that no one else broke character either, not just Leonardo. Everyone saw him smash the ever-loving f*** out of that glass and blood all over him but no one broke character and they all kept going all the same”.