ASSOCIATED PRESS Actor Leonardo DiCaprio speaks at the second day of the State Department's 'Our Ocean' conference at the State Department in Washington, Tuesday, June 17, 2014. President Barack Obama is looking to create the largest marine preserve in the world by protecting a massive stretch of the Pacific Ocean from drilling, fishing and other actions that could threaten wildlife, the White House said. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

Oscar-nominated star Leonardo DiCaprio is in Fort McMurray to research a documentary about the oil sands, according to several media reports.

"He wanted to hear about and see — first-hand — the oilsands and their impact on the planet,” an anonymous source close the Hollywood actor told the Edmonton Journal.

DiCaprio has been an active environmental advocate and recently narrated a series of documentaries about climate change.