- LOOK AT YOU GETTING NOMINATED TWICE
BEFORE YOU'RE 30 YEARS OLD.
THAT'S GREAT. - YEAH, IT'S--
[cheers and applause]
IT'S--IT'S A BIZARRE TIME. [laughs]
IT'S INCREDIBLE.
IT'S BEYOND BELIEF.
- IT'S SO FUNNY, BECAUSE I KNOW HOW HILARIOUS YOU ARE.
I MEAN, EVERYBODY KNOWS HOW HILARIOUS YOU ARE
FROM YOUR PREVIOUS FILMS,
BUT YOU'RE SUCH A GREAT DRAMATIC ACTOR AS WELL.
YOU WERE SO GOOD IN THIS FILM. - THANK YOU.
- DID YOU SEE THE FILM? HE'S SO GOOD IN THIS FILM.
[cheers and applause] - THANK YOU.
THANK YOU.
YEAH, NO, I-- THANK YOU.
- HOW DID YOU GET THE ROLE?
- WELL, I HAD MET MARTIN SCORSESE AT THE OSCARS
WHEN I WAS NOMINATED FOR "MONEYBALL."
AND I WAS LIKE, "I'M NOT GONNA GO UP TO HIM AND BOTHER HIM,"
'CAUSE--'CAUSE HE'S MY HERO.
HE'S MY ACTUAL CREATIVE HERO.
HE--"GOODFELLAS" IS THE REASON
I DEDICATED MY LIFE TO MAKING FILMS.
AND HE--I WAS SITTING RIGHT IN FRONT OF HIM.
SAID, "I'M NOT GONNA BOTHER HIM. I'M NOT GONNA BOTHER HIM."
AND I WENT UP, AND I WAS JUST LIKE,
"'GOODFELLAS' IS THE BEST."
THAT'S WHAT I SAID, AND IT WAS--
IT WAS REALLY EMBARRASSING.
I JUST RAN BACK AROUND TO MY SEAT AND SAT THERE,
AND I WAS LIKE, "NO! WHY DID I DO THAT?"
AND THEN ABOUT TWO WEEKS LATER, I GOT A CALL FROM MY AGENT
SAYING I WAS AT THE BOTTOM OF A LIST
OF FAR BETTER AND MORE ACCOMPLISHED ACTORS
TO STAR OPPOSITE LEO IN "WOLF OF WALL STREET."
- THAT'S NICE OF YOUR AGENT TO SAY THAT TO YOU.
- YEAH, SHE--YOU KNOW, SHE KEEPS ME HUMBLE, YOU KNOW?
AND--AND--
AND I GO, "OH, MY GOD." YOU KNOW.
EVEN THAT ALONE WOULD HAVE BEEN
THE COOLEST PHONE CALL I EVER RECEIVED.
AND SO I READ THE BOOK THREE TIMES.
I READ THE SCREENPLAY THREE TIMES.
AND THERE HAD BEEN A FEW-- I'D BEEN LUCKY.
IF YOU'RE AN ACTOR, YOU HAVE A MOMENT WHERE YOU READ SOMETHING,
AND YOU HAVE TO PLAY THAT CHARACTER.
AND I'VE BEEN REALLY LUCKY IN MY CAREER
THAT IT'S HAPPENED THREE OR FOUR TIMES.
YOU KNOW, WITH "MONEYBALL" AND "CYRUS"
AND "SUPERBAD" AND THEN THIS.
I JUST WAS LIKE, I-- - "CYRUS" WAS GREAT TOO.
- THANK YOU. THAT'S--
THANK YOU.
I MEAN, I LOVE THAT FILM.
AND I KNEW WHEN I READ THOSE MOVIES,
I HAD TO PLAY THIS PERSON.
AND THE ONLY PROBLEM WITH THIS ONE IS,
EVERYONE ELSE MORE FAMOUS THAN ME
WANTED TO PLAY HIM AS WELL.
AND SO I KNEW I WAS GONNA GET TO MEET WITH MR. SCORSESE
AND LEO WHO WAS PRODUCING THE MOVIE
AND STARRING IN IT.
WE HAPPENED TO BE IN MEXICO PROMOTING DIFFERENT FILMS.
AND I ASKED IF I COULD MEET WITH HIM,
AND I SAT HIM DOWN, AND I TOLD HIM ALL ABOUT DONNIE
AND WHAT I THOUGHT HE'D BE LIKE,
AND HE SAID, YOU KNOW, "OH, MY GOSH."
YOU KNOW, 'CAUSE I DIDN'T STOP TALKING
FOR PROBABLY AN HOUR AND A HALF.
AND I WAS LIKE, "I HAVE TO PLAY THIS GUY.
"I DON'T CARE WHO ELSE GETS THIS PART,
"I WILL KILL THEM, AND THEN I'LL GET TO PLAY THE PART.
AND--AND THAT'S THE WAY IT IS."
AND HE CALLED SCORSESE AND HAD MY BACK.
AND I WENT IN THERE, AND I WAS SO NERVOUS.
AND I HADN'T BEEN TO AN AUDITION IN SIX YEARS,
AND MY FIRST ONE BACK WAS FOR MARTIN SCORSESE.
AND THEN I READ FOR HIM,
AND I WALKED ALL THE WAY BACK DOWNTOWN FROM HIS OFFICE.
I SAID, "IF ANYTHING ELSE,
I GOT TO WORK WITH MARTIN SCORSESE FOR AN HOUR."
THAT WAS THE COOLEST.
AND THEN A MONTH AND A HALF GOES BY
WHERE I'M DYING EVERY DAY
'CAUSE I HAVEN'T HEARD ANYTHING BACK, YOU KNOW?
AND THEN I'M AT DINNER IN NEW ORLEANS,
AND I GET A PHONE CALL, AND IT'S LEO,
AND HE SAYS, "YOU GOT IT.
LET'S GO DO IT."
AND I RAN AROUND SCREAMING AND--
THROUGH THE STREETS OF NEW ORLEANS,
AND IT WAS THE BEST MOMENT OF MY ENTIRE LIFE.
IT WAS GREAT.
- WOW, THAT'S AMAZING.
[cheers and applause]
THAT'S AMAZING.
THAT'S--
THAT'S A GREAT PLACE TO LEARN THAT YOU GOT IT.
'CAUSE SCREAMING THROUGH THE STREETS OF NEW ORLEANS,
NO ONE EVEN LOOKS AT YOU.
NO ONE EVEN NOTICES.
THAT'S WHAT PEOPLE DO IN NEW ORLEANS.
- YES, YOU'RE THE MOST NORMAL PERSON
IF YOU'RE RUNNING THROUGH THE STREETS SCREAMING.
- YEAH, YOU'RE NEXT TO ANOTHER GUY RUNNING THROUGH THE STREETS.
AND YOU WORKED FOR SCALE, IS THAT RIGHT?
- YES, WELL, WHEN I GOT THAT PHONE CALL THAT NIGHT,
THEY SAID "THEY OFFERED YOU SCALE."
AND I SAID, "I WANT TO SIGN THE CONTRACT TONIGHT
SO LEGALLY THEY CAN'T CHANGE THEIR MIND."
THAT WAS MY THEORY THAT I DON'T EVEN WANT THEM
TO HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO CHANGE THEIR MIND.
I'M SO EXCITED.
AND I WOULD HAVE PAID HIM TO WORK FOR HIM.
YOU KNOW, HE--HE'S MY HERO, YOU KNOW?
- IT'S AMA-- YEAH, HE'S A GREAT GUY,
AND HE'S A BRILLIANT DIRECTOR, OBVIOUSLY,
BUT HE'S A REALLY FUNNY GUY TOO.
HE'S GOT A GREAT SENSE OF HUMOR.
- HE LOVES DOING BITS,
AND HE LOVES BEING THE STRAIGHT MAN IN BITS,
AND HE'S JUST-- HE'S JUST THE BEST.
YOU KNOW, I COULDN'T HAVE HAD HIGHER EXPECTATIONS GOING IN,
AND HE EXCEEDED ALL OF MY EXPECTATIONS
PROFESSIONALLY AND PERSONALLY.
- AND DID ANYTHING CHANGE FROM WHEN YOU AUDITIONED?
DID YOU KNOW YOU WERE GONNA DO THE TEETH
AND DID YOU KNOW YOU WERE GONNA--
I MEAN, DID YOU ALREADY HAVE
THAT CHARACTER THAT YOU ENDED UP PLAYING AS DONNIE,
DID YOU HAVE THAT IN YOUR HEAD WHEN YOU AUDITIONED?
- YEAH, WELL, THE TEETH WERE IN THE BOOK AND THE SCREENPLAY.
IN TERRY WINTER'S SCREENPLAY.
AND SANDY POWELL, THE COSTUME DESIGNER,
IS A LEGENDARY, OSCAR-WINNING COSTUME DESIGNER.
SO, YOU KNOW, I NEVER COLLABORATED THAT CLOSELY
ON WHAT A CHARACTER WOULD LOOK LIKE, YOU KNOW?
BUT WITH THE HAIR AND THE TEETH,
I WANTED DONNIE TO LOOK LIKE A LIT MATCH
BASICALLY WAS THE IDEA THAT HE WAS--
HIS HAIR'S KIND OF WILD AND CRAZY AND--
AND SANDY POWELL'S SO BRILLIANT.
YOU KNOW, WE GOT TO COLLABORATE
AND TALK ABOUT HOW DONNIE WAS A GUY
WHO WANTED TO LOOK WASPY AND UPPER-CRUST,
BUT THAT WASN'T WHO HE WAS, YOU KNOW?
AND SO HE'S PUTTING ON A VENEER,
AND HE'S LITERALLY WEARING VENEERS.
YOU KNOW, YEAH.
- IT'S--SO WHAT WAS THE HARDEST SCENE FOR YOU?
'CAUSE I WAS TALKING TO LEO, HE WAS HERE.
AND THE HARDEST SCENE, OBVIOUSLY, FOR HIM
WAS WHEN HE WAS ON QUAALUDES GOING DOWN THE STAIRS,
TRYING TO GET INTO THE CAR. - YEAH, YEAH.
- WHAT WAS THE HARDEST SCENE FOR YOU TO DO?
- THE HARDEST SCENE FOR ME WAS DIFFERENT.
IT WAS THE MOST CHALLENGING SCENE I'VE EVER DONE,
BUT MY FAVORITE SCENE I'VE EVER BEEN IN.
IS IF YOU HAVEN'T SEEN THE MOVIE, EARMUFFS.
YOU KNOW, DON'T LISTEN.
BUT, UH, THERE'S A SCENE TOWARDS THE END
WHERE HE SLIDES ME A NOTE THAT SAYS HE'S WEARING A WIRE,
AND IT'S BASICALLY THE END OF OUR FRIENDSHIP.
IT'S THE END OF EVERYTHING.
IT'S THE END OF EVERYTHING WE'VE BUILT, OUR LIFESTYLE.
AND BECAUSE HE'S WEARING A WIRE,
WE HAVE TO HAVE THIS CONVERSATION ABOUT SOMETHING
THAT'S COMPLETELY NOT WHAT WE'RE FEELING.
SO YOU CAN'T SAY THE WORDS THAT YOU ACTUALLY FEEL,
AND YOU HAVE TO EXPRESS EVERYTHING,
ALL THE SADNESS AND PAIN
WITHOUT USING ANY WORDS TO VERIFY THAT.
AND IT WAS JUST AN AMAZING SCENE.
AND SINCE LEO IS SO--HE DOESN'T UNDERSTAND THAT IT'S ACTING.
SO HE BEATS THE CRAP OUT OF YOU FOR SEVEN MONTHS
WHEN THE SCENE CALLS FOR IT,
AND SINCE I CAN'T PHYSICALLY BEAT HIM UP BACK
'CAUSE HE'S BIGGER THAN ME,
I HAD TO USE MY BRAIN TO BEAT HIM UP.
AND SO IN THAT SUSHI SCENE, THE LINE WAS WRITTEN,
HE GOES, "TAKE THAT LAST PIECE OF YELLOWTAIL,"
AND I'M SUPPOSED TO EAT IT.
AND THE FIRST TAKE, HE GOES,
"TAKE THAT LAST PIECE OF YELLOWTAIL,"
AND I GO, "NO, NO, BUDDY, YOU HAVE IT."
AND HE EATS IT.
SO HAD TO EAT, LIKE, 80 PIECES OF RAW YELLOWTAIL
THAT NIGHT AS WE SHOT THE SCENE.
AND THEN, BY THE END OF THE NIGHT,
HE WAS THROWING UP INTO A TRASH BIN,
AND EVERYONE WAS LIKE,
"LEO, ARE YOU OKAY? ARE YOU OKAY?"
AND THE ONLY TWO PEOPLE ON THE FLOOR LAUGHING HYSTERICALLY
WERE MYSELF AND MARTIN SCORSESE.
- THAT'S HILARIOUS.
AND IT WAS ONE OF THE BETTER MOMENTS OF THE WHOLE SHOOT.
- THAT'S HILARIOUS.
- BECAUSE I GOT TO GET MY FRIEND BACK FOR BEATING ME UP.
- GOOD FOR YOU. THAT'S WHAT HE DESERVES.
- YEAH.