In an interesting turn of events, Martin Scorsese wants Jonah Hill to co-star in his next movie, "Wolf of Wall Street." According to The Hollywood Reporter, Hill will co-star in the movie alongside Leonardo DiCaprio in the true-life story of a pair of friends who rise big in the world of Wall Street and then eventually fall in the face of corruption and mob infiltration.
DiCaprio stars in the movie as Jordan Belfort, the penny stock broker who served 20 months in prison after the scandal broke. The movie is based on Belfort's memoirs; his story previously served as the inspiration for the 2000 movie "Boiler Room."
"Wolf of Wall Street" would be quite a change for Hill, who got his start working in Judd Apatow comedies before receiving an Oscar nomination for a completely different sort of project.
Judd Apatow Movies
Hill got his start working in smaller roles for movies by writer/producer/director Judd Apatow such as "The 40-Year-Old Virgin" and "Knocked Up" before the filmmaker helped the actor realize his potential. Hill subsequently went from being a small character actor to an Apatow-inspired leading man in the young adult hit "Superbad," a "Dazed and Confused"-style coming-of-age story for the 21st century.
"Forgetting Sarah Marshall" and "Get Him to the Greek"
With "Superbad" making Hill a wanted man in Hollywood, he took another cameo role in the Apatow-produced film "Forgetting Sarah Marshall," stealing all the scenes he appeared in. The producers created a followup movie following Russell Brand's character from the rom-com, Aldous Snow, and re-cast Hill but gave him a completely different character. "Get Him to the Greek" focused on his character, an intern struggling to keep Snow under control.
"Moneyball"
Hill proved he could carry a comedic role with the best of them but ended up stereotyped into the persona of an awkward, overweight young adult. Luckily, Bennett Miller and Brad Pitt saw something more and cast the actor in the baseball drama "Moneyball." While still an awkward, overweight young adult, Hill brought extra pathos to the role and earned himself an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
"21 Jump Street"
With an Oscar nomination under his belt, Hill set out to lose weight and break out of the preconceived notions many in Hollywood built about him. His next major role was in the action comedy "21 Jump Street" with Channing Tatum. Hill still personified the awkward, unsure persona he carried in his earlier comedic roles but also continued to develop as an actor, giving his character more underneath the hood than he did in previous comedy efforts.
It might be "Moneyball" and the Oscar nomination that put Hill on Scorsese's radar, or it might be his maturity as an actor. Regardless of the reason, Hill might get the opportunity to work with one of the greatest directors in cinema history. That possibility, more than any Oscar nomination, proves the young comic has arrived.
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