Ridley Scott Going To "Wall Street"

We're in a recession, but Wall Street seems to be on a hot streak.

Following Oliver Stone's "Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps," it looks as if we'll be getting another look at the world of stocks, this time with an adaptation of Jordan Belfort's '90s stock market memoir, "The Wolf of Wall Street."

At first looking to be another re-teaming of Leonardo DiCaprio and director Martin Scorsese, Deadline says it looks as if Ridley Scott is in early discussions to take the reins of the film.

The book follows the supervisor of a group of stockbrokers who live off the extravagant funds they scored from squeezing clients to buy stocks that pay off in the broker's favor. The federal authorities eventually brought down the shady brokers.

DiCaprio and Scorsese came close to doing the project two years ago but it stalled due to a dispute between Warner Bros. Pictures and Paramount Pictures, resulting in the duo collaborating on "Shutter Island." Now, the scenario is that Scorsese will produce the project alongside DiCaprio, who will star.

Scott loves the script adaptation by Terrance Winter ("The Sopranos," "Boardwalk Empire"), but the biggest obstacle this film has in its way is scheduling.

Between Scott's "Alien" prequel, Scorsese's "The Invention of Hugo Cabret" and DiCaprio's starring role in Clint Eastwood's "Hoover," finding time to actually make the movie might be difficult.

The script is reported to be funny, dramatic and fast paced, and manages to make something of a sympathetic character out of a stockbroker who squeezed clients to buy stocks that paid off for the brokers.

How that will fare in a post-Madoff era remains be seen, but with Scott, DiCaprio and Scorcese involved, I think it will turn out quite fine.

Look for more on this project in the coming months.

First Look At The Cast Of "Wall Street 2"

Vanity Fair brings us the first collective shot of the cast from Oliver Stone's upcoming "Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps."

The film centers on Jacob “Jake” Moore (Shia Labeouf), a hungry, young hedge-fund worker who is dating Gordon Gekko’s (Michael Douglas) estranged daughter, Winnie (Carey Mulligan). Jake believes that his boss, Bretton James (Josh Brolin), somehow has had a hand in the suspicious death of his mentor (Frank Langella). Gekko agrees to aid the fresh-faced Jake in his plans for revenge.

Susan Sarandon co-stars as Moore's mother while Charlie Sheen returns in a small cameo as Bud Fox.

The cast looks sharp, dapper and appropriately dressed in the group shot, along with the more casually dressed director, Stone. Taken by Annie Leibowvitz, the pictures have a unique feel to them. A second shot of just Douglas in character as Gordon Gekko on Wall Street also is a great, with the columns of Federal Hall lurking in the background.

Stone spoke a little with Vanity Fair about the project, and returning to characters he directed over two decades ago.

He said: "When Gekko comes out of prison in the beginning of this movie, he essentially has to redefine himself. He’s looking for that second chance. Gekko couldn’t manipulate the markets like he did back then. It’s so big, so huge, that to be a minor player you need to be a major bank.”

I am very excited for this film, and I think it has potential to be one of the best of the year. The original was a great piece of filmmaking, and it’ll be thrilling to see Douglas take on a character he left over 20 years ago.

Stone said this about the role of Gekko: "I think that [Douglas] really delivers an interesting version of Gordon Gekko, 22 years later. It’s not the same man. Age has made him suffer. Also, I would point to Shia LaBeouf as the motivator for the movie. He’s the young spirit that’s learning."

I’m a big fan of Shia LaBeouf as well, and this film could be his breakout role in a ‘serious’ film. LaBeouf has proved he can bring in the money, with hits like “Transformers” and “Disturbia,” but it’ll be good to see the young actor in a serious, complex role. LaBeouf even took the Series 7 exam in real life and did a great amount of research in preparing for the role.

Added Stone: "We were on the street, every day. We saw people and, of course, we listened as much as we could. Of course you have the bankers point of view, too."

"Wall Street 2: Money Never Sleeps” will be released April 23, 2010.