Director Martin Scorsese is known for allowing his actors significant freedom, and *The Wolf of Wall Street* (2013) is a prime example of this collaborative approach. While the script by Terence Winter provided a solid foundation, several of the film's most iconic moments were entirely unscripted or heavily modified through improvisation.
### 1. The Chest-Thumping "Money Chant"
One of the most famous scenes in the movie—the lunch meeting between Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his mentor Mark Hanna (Matthew McConaughey)—was largely unscripted.
* **The Improvisation:** The rhythmic chest-thumping and humming was actually Matthew McConaughey’s personal pre-take ritual to "get into the zone" and relax his voice. Leonardo DiCaprio noticed him doing it between takes and suggested to Scorsese that they include it in the scene.
* **Specific Detail:** Many of McConaughey’s lines during this sequence were also ad-libbed, including the famous **"rookie numbers"** speech ("You gotta pump those numbers up, those are rookie numbers in this racket") and the **"fugazi"** explanation.
### 2. The "Lemmon" Quaalude Sequence
The chaotic sequence where Jordan Belfort experiences "cerebral palsy" from expired Quaaludes and struggles to get into his Lamborghini was a masterclass in physical improvisation.
* **The Improvisation:** While the script called for him to struggle, the specific physicality—especially the moment where **DiCaprio opens the car door with his foot**—was entirely improvised on the spot.
* **Specific Detail:** DiCaprio studied a video of people in a "slo-mo" drug-induced state to prepare, but the actual movements on the day were spontaneous. He reportedly strained his back performing the car-door stunt.
### 3. The "Sell Me This Pen" Motif
The foundational sales challenge that appears early in the film and again at the very end was not in the original script.
* **The Improvisation:** According to co-star Jon Bernthal (who plays Brad), DiCaprio came up with the idea while walking to the set. He had heard the "sell me this pen" line from his real-life security detail and decided to throw it into the scene to see how the other actors would react.
* **Specific Detail:** The shocked and varied reactions from the other "Strattonites" were authentic, as they weren't expecting the challenge.
### 4. Jonah Hill’s "Retarded" Child Joke
Jonah Hill (Donnie Azoff) was given immense freedom to riff, leading to some of the film's most darkly comedic moments.
* **The Improvisation:** When Donnie reveals he is married to his cousin, Jordan asks him what would happen if their kids were born with birth defects.
* **Specific Detail:** Hill’s response—**"If the kid was retarded, I would drive it up to the country and just open the door and let it say, 'You're free now'"**—was a spontaneous ad-lib. DiCaprio’s laughter in that moment is his genuine reaction to the absurdity of the line.
### 5. The Real Punch from Brad (Jon Bernthal)
In the scene where Donnie Azoff (Jonah Hill) provokes Brad (Jon Bernthal), the tension boiled over into a real physical encounter.
* **The Improvisation:** Scorsese felt the scripted "fake" punches weren't landing correctly. To get a more authentic reaction, Hill encouraged Bernthal to actually hit him.
* **Specific Detail:** Bernthal punched Hill so hard that **Hill’s prosthetic teeth flew out of his mouth**. Scorsese kept the camera rolling to capture Hill’s genuine shock and swelling face, which made it into the final cut.
### 6. The "Masturbation" Scene
The scene where Donnie Azoff publicly masturbates at a party after seeing Naomi (Margot Robbie) was improvised in its execution.
* **Specific Detail:** Jonah Hill wore a **prosthetic penis** for the scene. He spent time walking around the set with it before filming to desensitize the crew and extras so they wouldn't laugh during the take, though their shocked reactions in the final film were largely genuine.
### 7. The Deposition Scene
During the scene where Belfort and his team are being deposed by the SEC, Scorsese gave the actors a unique instruction.
* **The Improvisation:** Scorsese told the actors they were free to say whatever they wanted, provided they **didn't say anything important**. This led to the rapid-fire, nonsensical, and defensive dialogue that highlights the characters' arrogance and lack of cooperation.