Did You Know?
Sir Larry Wildman, the British takeover artist played by Terence Stamp, is widely believed to be modeled after Sir Gordon White of Hanson PLC. Hanson is a company that does nothing but acquisitions, liquidations, and wholesale deconstruction of companies.
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Hal Holbrook's fatherly character, Lou, is named for director Oliver Stone's real father, Louis Stone, a Wall Street stockbroker who died a year before this film's release.
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Tom Cruise wanted the part of Bud Fox, but Oliver Stone had already agreed to Charlie Sheen. Stone later promised Cruise a role in another picture, Born on the Fourth of July.
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The movie's line "Greed... is good." was voted as the #70 of "The 100 Greatest Movie Lines" by Premiere in 2007.
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As of 2007, this is the only movie to win both an Oscar (Best Actor: Michael Douglas) and a Razzie (Worst Supporting Actress: Daryl Hannah) for acting.
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The movie's line "Greed, for lack of a better word, is good." was voted as the #57 movie quote by the American Film Institute (out of 100).
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Gordon Gekko's "Greed is good" speech was inspired by a similar speech given by Ivan Boesky at the University of California's commencement ceremony in 1986. Boesky was a Wall Street arbitrageur who paid a $100 million penalty to the SEC to settle insider trading charges later that same year. In his speech, Boesky said "Greed is all right, by the way. I want you to know that. I think greed is healthy. You can be greedy and still feel good about yourself."
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Anacott Steel is the name of one of the companies that are in play. It is also the name of one of the semi-pro football teams referred to in The Longest Yard. Besides being a fictional company, the name may also be an obscure reference to Anaconda Copper, a company invested heavily in by Groucho Marx (among other entertainers) that busted in the stock market crash of 1929.
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At the Teldar Paper stockholders meeting, the name card of the man at the end of the back row on the right hand side reads "Sean Stone" (it can be seen over Gordon Gekko's shoulder). Sean Stone, Oliver Stone's son, plays Rudy Gekko.
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Oliver Stone gave Charlie Sheen the choice of having either Jack Lemmon or Martin Sheen play his father (Carl Fox). Charlie chose his dad. Stone would later cast Lemmon in JFK
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In the UK sitcom Only Fools and Horses.... the character of Del Boy reinvents himself as a "Yuppy Businessman" after seeing Wall Street several times and refers to his new red braces as "Gordon Gekko braces".
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Oliver Stone later admitted that everyone involved told him Daryl Hannah was miscast and told him to replace her, but he was too proud. This caused tension on set particularly with Sean Young who wanted the role herself.
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The scene where Bud confronts Gekko in his office is primarily composed of two extended takes, separated by the cut to the reverse angle shot of Gordon shouting "Because it's wreck able!" The remainder of the scene is all an unbroken take.
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Martin Sheen, who is both a cast member and father of cast member Charlie Sheen, worked with Michael Douglas's father, Kirk Douglas, in The Final Countdown.
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Although the Realtor played by Sylvia Miles is not referred to by name, in the sequel Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps it's revealed that her name is Dolores.
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Daryl Hannah has never seen the film. She said in an interview that the film was a "rough experience" and that she and Director Oliver Stone had an "unhealthy working relationship". While she is now fine with him, at the time of filming she accused Stone of being a misogynist, and as she did not want to relive the experience she chose never to see the film. She states "film is a collaborate medium. Sometimes you hook up with people you don't collaborate well with."
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When Bud Fox enters Gekko's Office for the first time, when the doors are closed behind him you can hear a wolf howl.
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Michael Douglas modeled his performance as Gordon Gekko after his friend Pat Riley, who at that time was head coach of the Los Angeles Lakers.
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The first feature film to demonstrate the use of a cordless portable phone, i.e. a cellphone.
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Spoilers
When Bud Fox gets out of the car to take the long walk up the stairs to the court room at the end of the movie, he passes by a newspaper stand in the background with a poster for Fortune magazine. It has his picture on the front cover.
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