Leonardo DiCaprio is keen to be "more honest" after turning 50

Speaking to Esquire UK, the movie star explained: "It [turning 50] creates a feeling like you have a desire to just be more honest and not waste your time.

"I can only imagine how the next few decades are going to progress. I look at my mother, for example, and she just says exactly what she thinks and wastes no time. She spends no time trying to fake it."

DiCaprio is determined to not waste any time moving forwards. Despite this, the actor acknowledges that he risks "having things fall apart" because of his honest approach.

He said: "Being more upfront and risking having things fall apart or risking the disagreements or risking going your separate ways from any type of relationship in life - the personal, the professional - it's that you don't want to waste your time any more. You have to just be much more upfront. It's almost a responsibility, because much more of your life is behind you than it is ahead of you."

DiCaprio has enjoyed a hugely successful career in Hollywood, starring movies such as Titanic, The Aviator, The Departed, and The Revenant. But the actor also strives to strike a healthy work-life balance.

He said: "I think I'm good at it because I take a lot of time off between films.

"I do things more sparingly, which means you're anxious to get back to your real life once you've finished filming. Life goes on hold when you're filming. Everything stops and gets put on the back burner in your real life."

DiCaprio feels fortunate that he can pick and choose his film projects.

The award-winning star - who is one of the world's highest-paid actors - shared: "I might be more concerned if I worked too much. To go from film to film, I would be scared about what I have to come back to. I'm very fortunate for that."

The Autumn issue of Esquire UK is out on 14 August