Why Margot Robbie Was ‘Terrified’ Of Taking Her Wolf Of Wall Street Role

Margot Robbie

by Katie Rosseinsky |
Published on

After a stint on Ramsay Street as part of the Neighbours cast and a handful of low-key TV roles, Margot Robbie’s breakout moment came in 2013’s The Wolf Of Wall Street, stealing the show as the uber-glamorous Naomi Lapaglia opposite Leonardo DiCaprio’s Jordan Belfort. However, taking on this overtly sexy character didn’t immediately come easily to the actress, who has now revealed she was ‘terrified’ to take on the role of ‘the hottest blonde ever.’

‘When I was playing Naomi in The Wolf Of Wall Street, it was so high-tempo sexy. I was acutely aware that the line in the screenplay was “the hottest blonde ever” – I’m clearly not the hottest blonde ever,’ she told Wonderland magazine in a new interview. ‘I was just terrified that people would see the movie and think: “Eugh! She’s not that great.”’

Margot Robbie as Naomi Lapaglia in The Wolf Of Wall Street
Margot Robbie as Naomi Lapaglia in The Wolf Of Wall Street ©Rex Features

The actress, who is currently starring opposite her former About Time co-star Domhnall Gleeson in Goodbye Christopher Robin, also revealed that she finds it ‘frustrating’ to have critics focus on her appearance, rather than her performance.

‘All the reading, all the acting coaching and then someone reviews the movie or interviews you and all they do is focus on the aesthetics. You think: “F—k you,”’ she said. ‘You’ve totally discredited the work I did and it’s not fair.’

Margot Robbie as Naomi Lapaglia in The Wolf Of Wall Street
Margot Robbie as Naomi Lapaglia in The Wolf Of Wall Street ©Rex Features

Margot’s forthcoming role in ice-skating biopic I, Tonya couldn’t be further from the high-octane glamour of her Wolf Of Wall Street role. To play the disgraced figured skater Tonya Harding, the actress donned an ‘80s perm, facial prosthetics and a body suit; that particular transformation, though, pales in comparison when you consider the Tudor get-up she’s currently wearing to play Queen Elizabeth opposite Saoirse Ronan in the forthcoming Mary, Queen of Scots (seriously, Google it…)

Discussing her role in I, Tonya, Margot explained, ‘the worse I looked the happier people were.’

‘Ironically, Tonya wasn’t unattractive, she’s just been marred with that story. Like Daphne [Milne, her character in Goodbye Christopher Robin], Tonya, right or wrong, is human,’ she added.

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