Jonah Hill isn’t buying the recent criticisms surrounding “The Wolf of Wall Street.”
While being honored at Variety’s Creative Impact Awards and 10 Directors to Watch brunch in Palm Springs on Sunday, the actor said he doesn’t believe the Martin Scorsese drama glorifies the behavior of penny-stock fraudster Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his associates.
“I personally take away the message from the film that this behavior, this lifestyle, leads to a very bad ending,” Hill said. “I think the movie is not glorifying this behavior, it is showing that it leads to bad places whether their judicial punishment doesn”t reflect that is one thing. Where your life ends up, who you are as a person, is another.”
Hill plays the role of Belfort’s crony Donnie Azoff in the film.The character is based on Belfort’s real-life business partner Danny Porush, who along with Belfort was convicted of securities fraud and money laundering through their now-infamous brokerage firm Stratton Oakmont. The film is based on Belfort’s memoir of the same name.
What did you think of “The Wolf of Wall Street”? Does it celebrate or condemn Belfort’s behavior?