Margot Robbie feared arrest for assaulting Leonardo DiCaprio in ‘The Wolf of Wall Street’ audition
Hollywood actor Margot Robbie recently admitted she feared she would “never work again” after improvising a physical embrace during the final audition for Martin Scorsese’s The Wolf of Wall Street with Leonardo DiCaprio.
The 2013 satirical thriller stars DiCaprio as the cunning Jordan Belfort, who cons his way to the top of the market following a significant hit during the Wall Street Crash. In the movie, Robbie plays Belfort’s second wife, Naomi LaPaglia, with who he immediately embarks on a passionate affair until his drug addiction sours their relationship.
During the final auditions, Robbie and DiCaprio enacted a scene together in which they were only expected to read lines. However, a moment of spontaneity urged Robbie to take things a step further, which she recently revealed left her feeling fearsome that she would be “arrested” for “assault” or “battery”.
Speaking about the scene during an episode of the Talking Pictures podcast, she recalled approaching DiCaprio and thinking, “I could totally kiss Leonardo DiCaprio, and that would be awesome. I can’t wait to tell all of my friends this.” However, she then thought, “Nah. And just walloped him in the face.”
Afterwards, she said the move was followed by “dead silence for what felt like an eternity” before DiCaprio and Scorsese “burst out laughing.” She said, “Leo and Marty were laughing so hard, they said, ‘That was great.'”
Recognising the boldness of her actions, Robbie then admitted she instantly felt like she had made a mistake and worried that her decision would ensure she never landed a role in a movie ever again.
“I’m going to get arrested, I’m pretty sure that’s assault, battery,” she remembered thinking, adding, “Not only will you never work again, actually you will go to jail for this, you idiot. And also, why did you have to hit him so hard? You should have done it lighter.”
The Wolf of Wall Street served as a major boost to Robbie’s career, who was only 22 at the time and unaccustomed to the prospect of fame and celebrity. However, after an encouraging chat with her mother, she surged forward and soon became one of the biggest stars in Hollywood.
Although her recollections of the movie are mixed with highs and lows, she remains proud of her work alongside DiCaprio and particularly appreciates her final scene, mainly because a last-minute rewrite coaxed out some of her best acting.
“We rewrote the whole scene literally the night before we shot it, it’s absolutely insane,” she told GQ. “I’ve no idea how it turned out, but to me it felt like the best acting I’ve ever done.”
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