'We shared popcorn and we wrestled!' 20 YEARS after its premiere, choir boy who stole the show in Baz Luhrmann's Romeo + Juliet reveals what it was like working with Leonardo DiCaprio

  • Quindon Tarver was just 12 years old when he was cast in the 1996 film as a choir boy singing Prince's hit When Doves Cry
  • In a new interview, the now-34-year-old reveals that he wrestled with the future Oscar-winner Leonardo 

By Valerie Siebert For Dailymail.com

Published: 12:14 EDT, 1 November 2016 | Updated: 13:20 EDT, 1 November 2016

It was 20 years ago today that Baz Luhrmann's modern take on the classic Shakespeare tale Romeo and Juliet debuted in theaters.

And while the film's leading stars have gone to have long and illustrious careers, Claire Danes and Leonardo DiCaprio weren't the only ones to capture the hearts of fans of the film. One of the most enduring images of the film is of a young choirboy whose rendition of Prince's When Doves Cry

After being tracked down by Cosmopolitan.com to his home in Plano, Texas, the now-34-year-old Quindon Tarver shared just what it was like to work with the future Emmy and Oscar winners and what he's been up to since. 

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Classic: Quindon Tarver, who famously sang When Doves Cry for the 1996 film Romeo + Juliet talks about his experience on the film 20 years on

All grown up: He was just 12 years old when he was cast in the movie. Now 34, Quindon lives in Plano, Texas

Looking back: In a new interview, Quindon reveals what it was like to work with future Oscar winner Leonardo DiCaprio

Back in 1995, Quindon had been signed to Virgin Records and was recording a debut album when he received a call from a music supervisor he had met on a previous audition. 

'They needed a kid to sing that part in the movie, and she remembered me, and her people reached out to my people, and I went and auditioned, and I got the part,' remembers Quindon.

The young man was just 12 at the time, and totally wowed them with a rendition of Whitney Houston's His Eye Is on the Sparrow.

Up front: In his famous scene from the movie, filmed in Mexico City, Quindon is seen at the front of a choir in a cathedral

Years on: He was given the role after being called to an audition by the film's music supervisor who remembered him from a previous audition

Big time: Both of the film's leading stars went on to have illustrious careers

Quindon was flown to Mexico City for the filming in a grand cathedral, where he was perched in the front of a choir on a balcony and took the lead on the song.

As for working with Leonardo DiCaprio, then just 21, Quindon gushed about the 90s heartthrob, describing him as 'one of the coolest, down-to-earth people that I think I’ve ever met.' 

Quindon also shared an anecdote from the filming, when Leonardo invited the youngster to hang out in his hotel room.

'We shared caramel popcorn. I think that was the coolest thing, sharing popcorn with this movie star,' says Quindon. 

The star: Quindon claims that Leonardo is 'one of the coolest, down-to-earth people that I think I’ve ever met'

On his way: Today, Quindon is working on a follow up album due to drop in 2017

'And then we wrestled! I always share that story with people. They’re like, "Well, did you meet him, how is he?" 

'I was like, "Yeah, not only did I meet him, but we shared caramel popcorn in the same bowl and then we even wrestled."'

20 years since the release of the film, Quindon claims that he still has fans reach out to him to say that the song 'saved their life when they were on the verge of thinking of doing the worst.'

He is currently working on a follow-up to his 1996 album to be released in 2017.  

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