It wasn’t the circus, or a superstar rock band. Leonardo DiCaprio came to town.

Over the course of five or six days in late March, Leonardo DiCaprio and director Clint Eastwood were spotted in the Northern Virginia and DC area, filming their new biopic “J. Edgar.” 

Eastwood’s new movie will star DiCaprio as the famous Director of the FBI J. Edgar Hoover, and will chronicle his controversial life from his early days working for the agency to his later life as an alleged homosexual and cross-dresser. 

Many of the movie’s scenes take place in familiar areas, such as the Library of Congress, Warrenton, Virginia, and the steps of the Masonic Temple in Alexandria.

The movie’s principle focus will be on Hoover’s role in solving the case of the kidnapping of Charles Lindbergh’s son, which gripped the nation at the time.

The headline story entailed how the 20-month-old son of the famous aviator Charles Lindbergh was blatantly taken from his home in the spring of 1932. 

Lindbergh’s son was found dead two months later, a short distance from the family’s home.  The senseless murder provoked a national manhunt to find the killer that lasted for two years.

One  inconsequential fact, conveniently left out of Dustin Lance Black’s script, is that Hoover  played only a minimal role at best in bringing the kidnapper to justice. 

Critic and film producer Larry Cohen said that Hoover had “only the most peripheral involvement” in solving the case. Eastwood’s movie, in contrast, places Hoover at the center of the justice-bringing process, and quite possibly gives him more credit than he deserves. 

The film also centers around Hoover’s rumored homosexual escapades later in his life.  In addition to portraying a cross dresser, DiCaprio will also share his first on-screen kiss with another man. 

Although some will be thrilled at this dramatic and intimate new step towards global enlightenment, the majority of America will be averting their gazes. Most of DiCaprio’s fans are accustomed to his on-screen relationships with women such as Kate Winslet. Even though the scene adds drama to the film, in reality there is no conclusive evidence backing up Hoover’s homosexual tendencies.  At the most, it is  pure gossip and speculation.

“J. Edgar” is projected to be released sometime in 2012, and will definitely explore new boundaries in DiCaprio’s acting abilities.

When it hits theaters, Northern Virginia and DC residents will be pleased to see their home town right smack in the middle of a  big time Hollywood movie set.