Matthew McConaughey added another high-profile dramatic role to his resumé on Thursday, joining the cast of Martin Scorsese’s “The Wolf of Wall Street.”
McConaughey will play Mark Hanna, an early boss and mentor to Jordan Belfort, the Wall Street trader whose memoir Terence Winter adapted for the big screen.
Leonardo DiCaprio, a producer on the movie, is starring as Belfort. Jonah Hill, Jean Dujardin, Rob Reiner and Kyle Chandler have also taken on key parts.
The book details Belfort’s swift rise in the world of trading, but his professional success is eventually undone by substance abuse and a generally tumultuous personal life.
Also read: Martin Scorsese Books Two More for 'Wolf of Wall Street'
McConaughey has drawn a great deal of media attention and critical praise this year for altering his career trajectory. After years of leading roles in lucrative but repetitive rom-coms, the actor has taken on a wide range of characters for iconic directors.
Some have been supporting parts, such as his turn as a strip-club owner in Steven Soderbergh’s “Magic Mike” and as a district attorney in Richard Linklater’s “Bernie.” It was Linklater who gave McConaughey his big break in “Dazed and Confused.”
Other roles have thrust him into the spotlight, such as his turn as a contract killer in William Friedkin’s “Killer Joe,” which opened on June 29.