Benicio Del Toro landed an Academy Award for 2000’s “Traffic,” in which he played a conflicted police officer. His new film, “Sicario,” puts him back in the world of drug trafficking, but as a very different character — a mysterious, dangerous man bent on revenge. Will Smith has earned two Oscar nominations for playing real-life people in “Ali” and “The Pursuit of Happyness.” He stands to earn his third nod for his portrayal of Dr. Bennet Omalu, a doctor who fought against the National Football League to expose the danger of head trauma in players. Among many topics, the two spoke about their mutual love of Roger Deakins and Eddie Murphy.

Benicio del Toro ("Escape at Dannemora") with Michael Douglas ("The Kominsky Method") compared the acting advice they received early in their careers and Douglas claimed Steven Spielberg stopped him from receiving a Best Actor award for HBO’s “Behind the Candelabra” at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.