Leo Was Attacked by a Shark!

Stop the presses! Leonardo DiCaprio was attacked by a shark! Okay, fine. He wasn't exactly attacked, but he did end up in a very small space with a great white and somehow made it out unharmed. Leonardo DiCaprio will appear on Tuesday afternoon's episode of Ellen to open up about the experience eight years after it happened. I think it's safe to assume he withheld this information so we wouldn't freak out. Now that we can see that DiCaprio is healthy and far our of harm's way, he was finally comfortable enough to let us know that, yes, he was trapped in a cage with a giant shark. Ah! Still scary!!!

The reason DiCaprio was swimming with sharks back in 2006 was because he was on an excursion with an NGO to learn more about the ocean's ecosystem. DiCaprio has his own nonprofit, the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation, which he says focuses on "protecting endangered species and their ecosystems. So coral reef systems, jungles, that are home to, sort of, top predators. Tigers. Sharks." Of his research adventure DiCaprio says,

I went scuba diving looking for sharks and I had a huge fear of sharks and when I did Blood Diamond in 2006 I actually got stuck in a cage with a great white, which was... awesome.

DiCaprio went on to mention that the organizers of the trip said it was the first time in 30 years that a shark got into someone's cage. The "gigantic" shark entered at the top of the cage and chomped down towards DiCaprio who pinned himself to the bottom.

It's crazy that DiCaprio got out of this not only alive, but without any injuries at all. Perhaps the shark could sense his deep connection to the ocean. Maybe the shark knew that he was just there to help save its ecosystem. The shark might just be a big Titanic fan. Who knows. DiCaprio still sounds a little shocked even telling the story now.

Check out Leonardo DiCaprio's shark story for yourself below.

Image: Getty