You know that feeling when you're watching a massive blockbuster and suddenly a face pops up that makes you do a double-take? For a whole generation of podcast nerds and Adult Swim fans, that moment happened in 2013. We’re sitting in the theater, watching Leonardo DiCaprio lose his mind on Quaaludes, and there he is. Henry Zebrowski.
The "Hong Kong" king himself.
Most people just see him as one of the shouting heads in the Stratton Oakmont office. But honestly, the story of how Henry Zebrowski landed in The Wolf of Wall Street—and what he actually did on that set—is way weirder than the movie suggests.
Who Exactly Was Henry Playing?
Let's clear the air on the character. Henry Zebrowski plays Alden "Sea Otter" Kupferberg. If you blink, you might miss the name, but you won't miss the vibe. Sea Otter is one of the original "misfits" Jordan Belfort recruits at the beginning of the film.
Basically, he's the guy who sold meat and weed before he started selling penny stocks.
It’s a perfect bit of casting. Scorsese needed guys who looked like they’d never seen a gym or a tailored suit in their lives. Henry fits that "morally malleable" energy to a T. He's part of that core group—alongside Jonah Hill and P.J. Byrne—that forms the backbone of the company’s early, grittier days.
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The Audition That Involved a Naked Room
Here is a detail that sounds like a fever dream: Henry Zebrowski’s audition history is legendary for being "too much." In the 2025 SNL50 documentary, it was revealed that he once did an SNL audition completely naked. Like, full-frontal.
While he (thankfully) kept his clothes on for Marty, the energy was the same.
During the casting process for The Wolf of Wall Street, Henry leaned into his actual, brief experience in a "boiler room." He improvised a monologue where he tried to scam a widow out of $100,000. It was dark. It was gross. Scorsese loved it.
Marty reportedly told him, "You're disgusting! This is perfect!"
Life at Leo’s Apartment
Before filming even started, the "minions" (as the core group of brokers was called) had to bond. They didn't go to a corporate retreat. They went to Leonardo DiCaprio’s actual apartment.
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Jordan Belfort was there. The real one.
Zebrowski has talked about this on The Last Podcast on the Left and various interviews. He describes Belfort pulling out a massive stack of cash—like $25,000—and tossing it on the table just to show them what it looked like. It was a "mini sales pitch tutorial."
Imagine being a guy who’s mostly done underground sketch comedy in New York, and now you're drinking expensive champagne in Leo’s living room while a convicted felon teaches you how to rob people over the phone.
That "All Nuns Are Lesbians" Line
If you’re a fan of the film, you remember the lunch scene. The one where they're all sitting around talking nonsense while Belfort tries to pitch the penny stock idea.
Henry’s character, Sea Otter, drops some of the most bizarre non-sequiturs in the whole script.
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- "All nuns are lesbians."
- "The Amish only want furniture."
Most of that was just Henry being Henry. Scorsese is famous for letting his actors riff, especially in those ensemble scenes. Zebrowski’s job was basically to provide the "texture" of a guy who has absolutely no business being a millionaire but is about to become one anyway.
Why He Disappeared From Big Movies (Sorta)
People often ask why Henry didn't become the next Jonah Hill after such a massive break. Honestly? He chose a different path. While he did shows like Heroes Reborn and Your Pretty Face Is Going to Hell, he basically bet his entire career on a little thing called The Last Podcast on the Left.
It worked.
The podcast became a juggernaut. Henry went from being "that guy from the Scorsese movie" to a cult icon in the true crime and paranormal world. There’s something kind of poetic about it. He played a guy who got rich off a cult of personality in The Wolf of Wall Street, and then he went out and built his own (much more legal) empire by yelling about aliens and serial killers.
What You Can Learn From the "Sea Otter" Era
If you're an actor or just someone trying to break into a tough industry, Henry’s stint with Scorsese is actually a masterclass in being "too much."
- Leaning into the weird: He didn't try to be a leading man. He tried to be the most memorable "disgusting" guy in the room.
- Riffing with the best: When you're in a scene with DiCaprio and Jonah Hill, you don't shrink. You drop a line about lesbian nuns and hope it makes the final cut.
- Knowing when to pivot: He used the clout from the film to fuel his own independent projects rather than waiting for the phone to ring for Wolf of Wall Street 2.
Next time you're rewatching the film, keep an eye on the background of the Stratton Oakmont office. Look for the short, hairy guy who looks like he just crawled out of a deli. That’s Henry. He’s the one making the whole thing feel real.
Practical Next Step: If you want to hear the most unhinged behind-the-scenes stories from the set, go find the older episodes of The Last Podcast on the Left (specifically the ones from 2014-2015). Henry drops "Marty" stories that you won't find in any official DVD commentary.