'The Wolf of Wall Street' Receives Raves at SAG Screening; Leonardo DiCaprio Could Win Best Actor

"The Wolf of Wall Street" was screened for the Screen Actors Guild, eliciting rave reviews from the audience. 

The new Martin Scorsese film received a private screening on Saturday where it received a standing ovation; Leonardo Dicaprio, Jonah Hill, Rob Reiner, Jon Favreau and Kennth Choi were on hand for a Q&A after the screening. The film was enthusiastically received by the audience, with many stating that Hill is a shoe-in for Best Supporting Actor and that DiCaprio could very well win the Best Actor Award at the Oscars.

During the Q&A, DiCaprio revealed that the film was almost not made because of the subject matter and because no one wanted to fund the film. He told audience members that the financing fell through because "the studio balked at some of the more salacious elements of the story."

As a result, Scorsese moved on to "Hugo" and Dicaprio did "J. Edgar." However, he said that he could not get the film or Scorsese out of his head. He said, "I really couldn't get Marty out of my mind. He's somebody that's able to sort of encapsulate the underworld with such authenticity and bring such humor to these characters. I mean, 'Goodfellas' was supposed to be a comedy, he told me. This was tailor-made for him."

DiCaprio added that they eventually found the financing for the movie with Red Granite. He said, "I said to Marty, 'We just don't get opportunities like this, ever, in this industry. People do not give you the freedom that these guys want to give us and the budget to make this an epic tale, so we have to take this opportunity.' Thankfully he agreed, and that's what you just saw up on the screen."

"The Wolf of Wall Street" tells the story of Jordan Belfort's rise and fall from grace. The new movie, which also stars Matthew McConaughey and Jean Dujardin, is set to open Dec. 25.