Baz Luhrmann directs modern Romeo and Juliet with Leonardo DiCaprio in 1996
Director Baz Luhrmann cast Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes to film a contemporary version of Shakespeare's play in Mexico for a November 1996 release.
Casting the lead roles
Luhrmann selected a magazine photo of nineteen-year-old DiCaprio to play Romeo after his debut film Strictly Ballroom. The director initially considered Natalie Portman for Juliet but switched to seventeen-year-old Claire Danes because she was older than her original choice.
Production challenges in Mexico
The cast and crew traveled to Mexico where hurricanes destroyed sets and illness halted filming for a week. Hairstylist Aldo Signoretti was kidnapped during the shoot and released after paying a three hundred dollar ransom.
Final release details
Fox opened the film on November 1, 1996, following a production that cost fifteen million dollars. The movie featured Brian Dennehy and Paul Sorvino as the feuding fathers in the story.
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