There are two sides to Jonah Hill. The guy who will make jokes about getting to second base with an old man in "The Watch" trailer, and the actor who has been emerging as a major dramatic talent across films like "Cyrus" and, of course, his Oscar-nominated turned "Moneyball." Now he's graduating to the big time.
Deadline reports that Hill has joined Martin Scorsese's next film, "The Wolf Of Wall Street," starring Leonardo DiCaprio. Wow, really impressive stuff. Based on the memoir by Jordan Belfort and his experiences on the job in the '80s and '90s, and adapted by Terence Winter ("Boardwalk Empire"), "The Wolf of Wall Street" tells of the rise and fall of a drug/sex/alcohol-addicted New York stockbroker. DiCaprio is in the lead and Hill will play his best friend, who works in the furniture business, and is convinced by Belfort to join in the wild world of stocks.
This is a major move for Hill and one that could establish him as the rare actor who can deliver both big comedy hits ("21 Jump Street") and be a strong presence in dramas as well. It's frankly really heartening to see Hill spread his wings and transition into bolder, more ambitious fare, so we couldn't be more thrilled to see him working with Scorsese and DiCaprio. Who would've thought Seth from "Superbad" would ever get this far? Nicely done, Jonah. Production on "The Wolf Of Wall Street" gets underway in August. [Deadline]