We found no evidence that lends any credibility to the photo. We note that the earliest posting of the picture known to us came from a YouTube channel that hosts thumbnail images generated with artificial intelligence.
A rumor circulating online in October 2024 claimed a photo showed Oscar-winning actor Leonardo DiCaprio shirtless while engaging in a sex act at one of Sean "Diddy" Combs' "freak-off" parties. However, this rumor was unfounded. An unknown user possibly created the image with an artificial-intelligence tool.
The purported DiCaprio photo spread online in the weeks following Combs' arrest on Sept. 16, 2024. The U.S. attorney's office for the Southern District of New York charged Combs with racketeering conspiracy, sex trafficking and transportation to engage in prostitution, all centered on so-called "freak-off" parties — alleged sexual marathons involving drug use and coercion.
Diddy pleaded not guilty on Sept. 17 and, if convicted, faces a minimum prison sentence of 15 years. DiCaprio was not named in any court filings against Combs, nor did we locate any evidence of his involvement in any of Combs' "freak-off" parties.
More Than 28 Million Views
One prominent post displaying the supposed picture received more than 28 million views on X. That post from the user named Restricted Daily (@Restricted_on_X) — whose bio mentioned support of former U.S. President Donald Trump — read (archived): "Puff Daddy said Leonardo DiCaprio was his favorite guest at the 'freak-offs' — never missed a party! Now Leo's endorsing Kamala Harris. I guess Hollywood friendships have political perks!"
Other users also posted the same image — some with slight alterations — on the 4chan message board, Reddit, Threads, X and other websites.
In our research — including reverse-image searches — we concluded that the Celebrity Whispers YouTube channel hosted a video (archived) with a thumbnail image containing the oldest known posting of the picture. The channel also hosted other videos featuring AI-created thumbnail images. Seeing as the video displayed fewer than 50 views, it's possible the image originated at an earlier date from a different YouTube channel — one that also promotes misleading thumbnail images with AI-voiced and AI-edited celebrity news videos.
The Celebrity Whispers channel uploaded the thumbnail image with DiCaprio (seen below) on Oct. 3. That video's title read, "Kanye West Exposes Leonardo DiCaprio's Dark Secret?!" We found no evidence of West saying anything that might amount to him "exposing" DiCaprio or a "dark secret" about the actor. (The smaller photo featured in the center of the image originated from a set of authentic pictures captured at the first Combs-hosted white party in 1998. We provide more details about those photos later in this article.)
Misleading clickbait videos about celebrities are available in abundance on YouTube.
Diddy Vogue Interview Clip and 'White Parties'
The rumor in the prominent post claiming DiCaprio threw his support behind U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris' 2024 presidential campaign was true, according to The Hollywood Reporter. However, the claim that Combs said DiCaprio "was his favorite guest at the 'freak-offs'" was false.
Combs said in a video interview released by Vogue in December 2017 that DiCaprio would be the first person on the invitation list for his next star-studded "white party" — a recurring series of parties attended by celebrities, always with a strict head-to-toe white dress code. He did not say DiCaprio was his favorite guest at "freak-off" parties.
A user on X shared a clip from the video interview following Combs' arrest:
In 2018, Billboard.com reported details about some of Combs' past white parties, including one hosted in Beverly Hills in 2009. The story said Combs teamed up with actor Ashton Kutcher to make the party a fundraiser for the charity Malaria No More, and featured appearances by Trump's second wife, Marla Maples, and their daughter, Tiffany Trump, as well as numerous other celebrities.
DiCaprio's Appearance at 1998 White Party
In 1998, an unidentified photographer captured pictures of DiCaprio enjoying a drink at the first-ever white party hosted by Combs in East Hampton, New York. The Alamy image-licensing website hosts the photos. The pictures do not show any illicit or sexual activity. Even so, some users shared the pictures in an attempt to promote unfounded rumors via misleading, clickbait YouTube videos.
For example, the verified YouTube channel Mediocre Tutorials and Reviews featured one of the photos of DiCaprio at the 1998 party in the thumbnail image for a video titled, "New Party Footage of Diddy, LeBron James & Leonardo DiCaprio Goes Viral." The thumbnail image also showed a fake photo of Combs, actor and musician Jennifer Lopez and NBA superstar LeBron James. The video received more than 842,000 views, and — aside from an appearance of one of the photos showing DiCaprio enjoying a drink at the 1998 white party — did not feature even one second of footage showing him.
This YouTube video thumbnail image was one of many displaying fake or misleading photos of celebrities purportedly connected to Combs' alleged criminal activity.
Additional Research
Photos from a white party thrown by Combs in 1999 in East Hampton showed TV host Regis Philbin posing with fashion designer Vera Wang and others, as well as film actor Chevy Chase watching David Blaine perform a magic trick.
We also noted numerous other fake photos of DiCaprio and other celebrities promoted in thumbnail images for misleading YouTube videos. Some of those videos displayed fake thumbnail images of ABC News "World News Tonight" anchor David Muir supposedly reporting that the FBI revealed evidence of DiCaprio's involvement in Combs' freak-offs and planned to arrest him.
Another fake picture shared in a post on X (archived) in October 2024 falsely claimed to show a topless and censored Lopez standing with Combs, rapper Jay-Z and others.
We previously reported about a number of rumors surrounding the charges against Combs. For example, users made false and unfounded allegations about Bishop T.D. Jakes regarding involvement in Combs' sex parties, as well a false rumor claiming CNN ran footage showing Combs and Jay-Z involved in illicit sexual activities in "underground play tunnels." We also reported on another AI-created image purportedly showing Trump and gunman Thomas Crooks planning the July 2024 Trump assassination attempt.