Investing isn’t just about luck—it’s about strategy, research, and sometimes, a little bit of genius. Over the years, Hollywood has brought some of the smartest (and sometimes most controversial) investors to life on screen. Some of the biggest financial wins (and disasters) have come from bold investment decisions, creative deal-making, and knowing when to act. 

From high-stakes trading to corporate fraud, these stories highlight the risks and rewards of financial genius. With the emergence of digital assets, many inventors across the spectrum are now on the lookout for the best new crypto to buy. According to crypto writer Ines S. Tavares, modern investors often look to historical strategies for guidance. 

This is because, just as with stocks and their unique features, factors like mainstream adoption, real-world application, and presale values all matter in crypto. While crypto is only now starting to break into movies, ordinary trading has featured for decades. Here’s a look at some of the best films and the brilliant traders they featured.  

The Big Short, based on Michael Lewis’s book, tells the story of a few investors who spotted the 2008 housing bubble before it crashed. Michael Burry, played by Christian Bale, took a huge bet against the market using credit default swaps. He saw what others ignored—bad mortgage loans stacked into seemingly stable investments. 

The strategy? Short selling. By betting against the market, these investors made billions while banks crumbled. What makes this movie so fascinating is its ability to simplify complex financial concepts in a way that anyone can understand. 

In contrast, Gordon Gekko, the ruthless investor played by Michael Douglas in Wall Street, is famous for his “Greed is good” speech. The movie follows Bud Fox, a young stockbroker eager to rise to the top, who gets caught up in insider trading. The strategy here is clear: use confidential information to gain an unfair advantage. 

But while the film highlights the temptation of unethical investing, it also underscores the power of research, networking, and aggressive deal-making. At its core, it’s a cautionary tale about the dangers of unchecked ambition and the consequences of profits above ethics.

Jordan Belfort’s rise and fall as a stockbroker in The Wolf of Wall Street is legendary. He built his empire using a pump-and-dump scheme—artificially inflating stock prices to dump them for profit. While illegal, the movie offers a deep dive into how salesmanship and persuasion can drive financial success. 

Belfort’s story is a reminder that markets can be manipulated by hype and psychological tactics, and many investors fall for well-marketed but fundamentally weak assets. While Belfort’s methods were unethical, his mastery of human behavior was key to his success—until it all came crashing down.

Trading Places is a classic comedy that follows a bet between two wealthy brothers who manipulate two men into swapping lives—one, a rich investor, and the other, a street hustler. The story takes a turn when the pair discover a scheme involving futures trading—a market where investors bet on the future price of commodities like orange juice. 

They outsmart their opponents by acting on inside information and turning the tables on the market manipulators. Beyond its humor, the film cleverly explains how financial markets operate, particularly how supply, demand, and speculation drive prices.

And then there’s Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room–a documentary that exposes one of the biggest financial frauds in history. Enron executives used complex financial instruments and creative accounting to hide debt and inflate profits. Investors were misled, and the stock price soared—until the fraud was exposed, leading to one of the largest corporate bankruptcies ever. 

The Enron scandal is a case study of corporate greed and deception. It serves as a stark warning to investors about blindly trusting financial statements and the importance of transparency.

Although Hollywood often dramatizes the financial world, these films provide valuable insights into the risks, rewards, and ethics of investing. Some strategies, like market research and timing, remain essential tools for investors today.