One thing that has been brought up several times since the controversy surrounding THE WOLF OF WALL STREET started is how much money Jordan Belfort will be making from the film. Belfort still hasn't made full restitution to his victims, and some believe he shouldn't receive any money from the movie. In a recent Facebook post, Jordan Belfort says he will be turning over 100% of the profits from the movie (and his book) to the government.
As you can imagine, I am very busy right now, but I owe this post to all my loyal friends and fans who have supported me since the beginning: For the record, I am not turning over 50% of the profits of the books and the movie, which was what the government had wanted me to do. Instead, I insisted on turning over 100% of the profits of both books and the movie, which is to say, I am not making a single dime on any of this. This should amount to countless millions of dollars and hopefully be more than enough to pay back anyone who is still out there. I thought this was already public information, as I have already said it publicly numerous times, but apparently there is so much NOISE right now that it has gotten lost in the shuffle. So, again, for the record: I am not making any royalties off the film or the books, and I am totally content with that. My income comes from new life, which is far better than my old one. (Although I will admit the Quaaludes were kind of fun, at least in the beginning. Thankfully, they're illegal! and impossible to find!)
I'm not going to sit here and call Jordan Belfort a great man for turning over all of the profits, but in my opinion, it's the right thing to do. His victims deserve restitution, and if he's not profiting from the movie and book, maybe some people will chill the f*ck out about THE WOLF OF WALL STREET.