DiCaprio's new movie, "The Beach," will be in U.S. theaters in February

January 18, 2000
Web posted at: 6:04 p.m. EST (2304 GMT)

(CNN) -- Ever since 1997's "Titanic" turned him into a mega-star, fans everywhere have been eagerly awaiting a new film from Leonardo DiCaprio. With "The Beach" set for U.S. release on February 11, DiCaprio is finally back.

Shot on Thailand's Phi Phi Li island in the Andaman Sea, the 20th Century Fox production -- based on Alex Garland's 1998 novel about a traveler's search for the perfect beach --battled waves of controversy.

The studio was sued for $2.4 million (100 million baht) by Thai environmentalists, who said the shooting location -- a Thai national park -- was irreparably damaged when producers planted non-native coconut trees, smoothed over sand dunes to widen the beachfront and removed vegetation.

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Leonardo DiCaprio talks about his new movie, 'The Beach' Real 28K 80K Windows Media 28K 80K

But DiCaprio, a self-described environmentalist who's slated to host a 30th anniversary Earth Day celebration in Washington on April 22, recently told the Toronto Sun he felt that Thai environmentalists used the movie to draw attention to their issues. Producer Andrew Macdonald said the $125,000 bond posted will be refunded because locals were so pleased by the island's post-filming, post-cleanup condition.

And thus, as the thunderclouds are apparently breaking up, DiCaprio is free to blue-sky his newest film's prospects. He recently talked to CNN's "Showbiz Today" about his film, his fame -- and getting wet.