You probably remember the image. Leonardo DiCaprio, veins popping, screaming into a golden microphone while a midget is tossed in the background. It’s the definition of "extra." When The Wolf of Wall Street hit theaters on Christmas Day in 2013, it felt like a three-hour shot of adrenaline mixed with a very expensive tequila. It was loud, it was vulgar, and it was undeniably Scorsese. But when you look back at the Wolf of Wall Street awards tally, the reality is a bit more complicated than the hype suggests.
Honestly, the movie was a bit of a paradox. It grossed nearly $400 million worldwide, making it Martin Scorsese’s most successful financial hit ever. Critics mostly loved it. Fans worshipped it. Yet, when it came to the big trophies—the stuff that really cements a film's legacy in the history books—the movie often felt like the guy who gets invited to the party but never gets the girl.
The Big Oscar "Zero"
Let’s just get the elephant in the room out of the way. The Wolf of Wall Street walked into the 86th Academy Awards with five major nominations. It walked out with absolutely nothing. Zero. Zip.
The Academy nominated it for:
- Best Picture (lost to 12 Years a Slave)
- Best Director for Martin Scorsese (lost to Alfonso Cuarón for Gravity)
- Best Actor for Leonardo DiCaprio (lost to Matthew McConaughey for Dallas Buyers Club)
- Best Supporting Actor for Jonah Hill (lost to Jared Leto for Dallas Buyers Club)
- Best Adapted Screenplay for Terence Winter (lost to John Ridley for 12 Years a Slave)
It’s kinda wild to think about now. DiCaprio’s performance as Jordan Belfort is arguably one of the most iconic roles of the 21st century. People still quote the "I’m not leaving!" speech in office meetings. But 2014 was the year of the "McConaissance." Matthew McConaughey had a tiny but unforgettable cameo in Wolf as Mark Hanna (the chest-thumping mentor), but he snatched the Oscar for playing Ron Woodroof in Dallas Buyers Club.
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Basically, Leo was great, but the Academy felt McConaughey’s physical transformation and the gravity of his role were "more" Oscar-worthy. It fueled the long-running internet meme that the Oscars simply hated DiCaprio, a narrative that didn't end until he finally won for The Revenant two years later.
Where the Wolf Actually Won
Despite the Oscar snub, the movie didn't go home empty-handed from the entire awards season. You've got to look at the Golden Globes and the critics' circles to see where the love was.
Leonardo DiCaprio actually won the Golden Globe for Best Actor in a Motion Picture – Musical or Comedy. This is a classic Globe move—splitting the categories allowed Leo to take a win without having to battle the heavy dramas. During his speech, he notably thanked Scorsese for being a mentor and a collaborator, marking their fifth film together.
Then you have the smaller but still prestigious wins. Margot Robbie, who was basically an unknown at the time, won Best Female Newcomer at the Empire Awards. It’s hard to imagine now, but that movie was her massive launchpad.
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The film also picked up:
- American Film Institute (AFI): Named one of the Top Ten Films of the Year.
- Critics' Choice Movie Awards: Leo won Best Actor in a Comedy.
- MTV Movie Awards: Jonah Hill snagged Best Comedic Performance.
- National Board of Review: They gave Terence Winter the award for Best Adapted Screenplay.
It’s funny to see Jonah Hill winning an MTV award alongside an Oscar nomination. He famously took a massive pay cut—only $60,000, which is "scale" in Hollywood—just to work with Scorsese. The gamble clearly paid off in prestige, even if he didn't get the gold statue.
The Controversy That Cost Them?
Why didn't it win more? You sort of have to look at the atmosphere in 2014. There was a lot of noise about whether the movie was glorifying Jordan Belfort’s crimes. Some older Academy members reportedly hated the film. There were stories about a screening at the Academy where a member allegedly screamed "Shame on you!" at Scorsese.
Scorsese and DiCaprio spent a lot of the press tour defending the film. They argued that showing the excess wasn't the same as endorsing it. "The movie is a cautionary tale," DiCaprio told several outlets. But that moral ambiguity might have pushed voters toward safer, more traditionally "heroic" or "important" stories like 12 Years a Slave.
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A Legacy Beyond the Trophy Case
If you look at the Wolf of Wall Street awards history today, it looks like a "successful but not dominant" run. But awards are a snapshot in time. In 2025, the New York Times ranked the film at number 20 on their list of the 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century.
That’s the real win. Gravity was a technical marvel, and 12 Years a Slave was a masterpiece of storytelling, but The Wolf of Wall Street has a cultural footprint that has only grown. It’s become the "Wall Street" movie for a new generation, replacing the 1987 Oliver Stone classic in the cultural zeitgeist.
How to Analyze Film Success Today
If you're trying to figure out if a movie like this was actually "successful" despite the Oscar losses, here is what you should look at:
- Longevity: Check how often the film is cited in "Best of the Decade" lists. Wolf consistently ranks in the top 10 for the 2010s.
- Career Trajectory: Look at what happened next for the cast. Robbie became a mogul and a superstar. Hill proved he was more than just the guy from Superbad.
- The "Fugazi" Factor: Does the movie stay relevant? Between the memes, the TikTok sounds, and the constant streaming presence, this movie is a permanent fixture in pop culture.
If you want to dive deeper into the Scorsese/DiCaprio partnership, I’d suggest watching The Aviator or The Departed next. Both had much better luck with the Academy, but neither quite captures the raw, chaotic energy that made Wolf a legend.
To see the full impact of these movies, you can track the historical winners on the official Oscars Database or the Golden Globes archive. Looking at the nominees they beat—and lost to—gives you a much clearer picture of how Hollywood’s tastes change every year.