The Real Wolf of Wall Street, a three-part Paramount+ documentary series about former broker Jordan Belfort, is heading to audiences in the United Kingdom and Australia. The BBC and Australian streaming service Stan have acquired the program from Hat Trick International, which launched the series at MIPCOM Cannes earlier this month.
The production was co-produced by Maxine Productions, part of Sony Pictures Television, Bloomberg and See It Now Studios for Paramount+. It examines Belfort’s rise as the leader of the Stratton Oakmont brokerage in the 1990s, his guilty pleas to fraud and stock market manipulation charges, and his subsequent 22-month prison sentence. Afterward, Belfort became an FBI informant and testified against others involved in his scheme.
The series draws on unreleased footage, thousands of internal FBI documents and archival interviews. Among those featured are Belfort’s former wife, Nadine, who provided the basis for Margot Robbie’s character in the film The Wolf of Wall Street, and former employee Donna Schlessinger.
The documentary follows the 2013 Paramount Pictures film The Wolf of Wall Street, starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Robbie, which portrayed Belfort’s excessive life as a New York stockbroker and boiler-room boss.
Sarah Tong, HTI’s director of sales, said the series offers accounts from people who were directly involved and presents material beyond what the film could show. She described the program as a different perspective on a story that has already become a major cultural reference.
Sources: Deadline.