So it happened. Leonardo Di Caprio just won his first Oscar after 6 win-worthy nominations.

And it was just like him to use his victory speech as a platform to further the cause of work against climate change, and all in a few seconds, address the glittery, star-studded audience, the world sitting behind their TV’s, the greedy corporations of the capitalist world, the indigenous people of the world, the underprivileged, and humanity in general.

To Leo, this Oscar is more than an award: it is the culmination of his life’s work in film and philanthropy and a platform to bring awareness to some of the richest and most influential people in the USA and the world.

To us, his rabid fans, this Oscar is the termination of a lifetime of memes and jokes, and never again will the Oscars be as important again. If Leo can win an Oscar once, he can win it again. The ‘Academy Award for Best Actor’ won’t have us sitting at the edge of our couches again.

In what would be appropriate to call a montage than what it actually is—a series of googled GIF’s—we’ll follow Leo through his journey from movie to movie, where he melted our hearts and inspired our minds. Leo, this one is for you.

1. What’s Eating Gilbert Grape

At the tender age of 19, Leo was nominated for his first Oscar for the role of Arnie Grape as ‘Best Supporting Actor.’ Playing a 17-year old with a severe mental condition, young Leo showed a depth of maturity and skill that belied his age. I went into the movie for Johnny Depp (who deserves his own GIF page) and was left with immense respect for baby Leo.

2. Romeo + Juliet

This marked the beginning of the Leo of Romance. This is where we began to fall in love with Leo's softer side. This is where romance--even though everyone important dies in both play and movie--survives. Because even after the credits, Leo as Romeo stayed with us.

3. Titanic

His best known film that sky-rocketed him to fame, Titanic was perhaps his most commercialized one. Though the kitschy, touristy Titanic pose is now an ubiquitous eyesore at any sea-vessel, the film itself is a classic. Leo's heart-warming and tear-jerking performance as Jack will never be forgotten. In a strange twist of fate, the film itself won 11 Oscars, but for Leo it was not meant to be... just yet.

"I can't. I'm involved now. You let go, and I'm, I'm 'onna have to jump in there after you." *cue heart melting into ambiguous puddle*

4. The Departed

Perhaps in an effort to rid himself of his lover-boy image post the wild success of Titanic, or perhaps due to a better understanding of the kind of films he wanted to make, Leo's part in The Departed as the cop, Billy, was brutal. This movie, however, was the first of Leo's oeuvre, as perhaps, a more serious actor. The themes of his films from this point onwards became more complex... Leo as Jack or Romeo was no more. Incidentally, the film won an Oscar for 'Best Film', which, director Martin Scorsese said he was surprised it won anything at all, because of the tough and violent nature of the film.

5. Blood Diamond

Blood Diamond revealed the skill and talent of the man: the amazing South African accent, the character complexity, and the pain of the themes, all of which he condensed and performed with ease and accuracy. No matter what your particular political and economic views are, this movie showcased Leo's ability to deliver a carefully controlled and magnificent performance. Badass, handsome and a pure, liberal art: Leo as Danny Archer is one of my favorites. The Academy must have thought so too, because Blood Diamond is one of Leo's near Oscar-wins for 'Best Actor.'

I would like to believe his philanthropy and his film choices are interrelated: he is known to invest in and promote synthetic diamonds.

7. Inception

Moving into the more confusing and illusory realms of filmmaking, Inception confused everyone. And those who bragged of understanding everything immediately lied.

Leo, playing an older role, suddenly morphed into a troubled, constricted middle-aged man with a painful past. This movie gave an entire new dimension to Leo's acting. Here, we saw a more vulnerable, oftentimes crazed side to his performance. Though people's opinions of the director, Christopher Nolan and his work, ranged from "best film ever!" to "Nolan's worst work ever", I'd say Leo hit the jackpot either way. He was the glue that kept the proverbial totem from tipping over... or not?

8. Django Unchanged

To be completely honest, Djano Unchained would never top a list of my favorite Leo films. The film has far too much blood in it; the acting by all actors and the cinematography on all fronts, however, was brilliant. As for Leo, it brought us to see another facet of the Leo-diamond: if anyone can portray a cruel, power-hungry white slave-owner, it would be Leo. Only he could play such a hateful role and still have the crowd love him (Leo, not Calvin Candie). The addition of Quentin Tarantino to the long list of amazing directors that he's worked with such as David Cameron, Martin Scorsese Baz Luhrmann, and Christopher Nolan is nothing to scoff at either.

9. The Great Gatsby

Ranked as Leo's best film on IMDB, The Great Gastby brought both literature and Leo lovers together (a.k.a me) to watch this visual masterpiece. Capturing the sweet sorrow of the book, both the movie and Leo managed to win over hearts across the globe. In a strange twist, Leo goes back to his romantic side with this film; yet there is something sinister and sad about this role. We saw Leo's magnificently opulent and indulgent performance as Jay Gatsby; how does he manage to be such intense and crazy characters with such effortlessness? At this point onwards, no matter what the storyline of the movie is, Leo's movies were guaranteed to be money and time more than well spent.

10. The Wolf of Wall Street

Another Oscar nomination, another Oscar-loss. Even Leo-skeptics were reformed after the drug-addled, sex-addict role of Jordan Belfort was played to decadent perfection by Leo. I was both equal parts disgusted and awestruck by the scene of a drugged Jordan Belfort crawling across the ground to get to his swanky race car... but that is the very magic of Leo's skill, winning him another Oscar nomination. He makes the worst people and the best people come alive, and his understanding of human behavior can only make his acting better and more complex with every movie.

11. The Revenant

Who knew it would take Leo to eat a raw bison liver (though he is a vegetarian, he is committed to his art), sleeping in animal carcasses and crawling in and out of frozen rivers to finally win him an Oscar? The scenes and his acting only become truly real and accurate if he actually becomes the character his is playing, which basically means bison liver for dinner. We see Leo in his most elemental form as Hugh Glass; wild, untamed, natural... as Leo said in his (finally) Oscar acceptance speech, the film was about man's connection to the natural world. This movie is for the strong-stomached, but watch it to see Leo break all barriers and probably deliver one of the most powerful performances ever, on all fronts.

I would like to think of Leo's first Oscar as not only for his brilliant performance in The Revenant, but a sort of cumulative acknowledgment of all the amazing work he has done, ever since the young age of 19. Between the ages of 19 and 41, Leo has produced a body of work like no other. For that, and all his work with the environment and philanthropy, Leo will be, first and foremost, before being an actor, a legendary human.

It has only been a little while since the Oscar's, and yet, proving me wrong, the Internet has already made new memes. Perhaps Leo has provided more than just high-class acting and philanthropy to the world...