Fans of "The Wolf of Wall Street" have a novel way to own their own piece of the Martin Scorsese classic.
To mark the 10th anniversary of the movie's release, Miami-based Lala released a collection of digital collectibles (also known as NFTs) that fans can purchase to own a share of the film's revenue stream.
"This is the first time ever fans of a major motion picture will have this type of access," CEO Hiram Vazquez told Miami Inno.
The revenue is generated from intellectual property infringement takedowns, which remove unauthorized copies of the film or uses of copyrighted materials from public view. Owners of the NFTs will receive a small portion of revenue from "The Wolf of Wall Street" each year, along with a printed version of the artwork and access to exclusive content and events.
The collection includes 2,225 unique collectibles and are available for either for $99, $199 or $499. Lala partnered with Red Granite Pictures, the production company behind the film, to produce the official art. Designed by Peruvian surrealist artist Paolo Torres, the images are linked to scenes from the movie and its main character Jordan Belfort, played by Leonardo DiCaprio.
Owners will have the ability to list the NFT on secondary marketplaces like Oversea to trade or sell it to other collectors.
NFT ownership exploded in 2021, when the trading of digital collectibles hit $17 billion — a 21,000% increase from the previous year. But the market collapsed in 2022, sinking the value of even the most sought-after collections.
Vazquez acknowledged that it is impossible to guarantee that one of Lala's "Wolf of Wall Street" NFTs will hold its value over time.
"That said, we believe that by giving fans a piece of ownership from this movie it’ll turn them into ambassadors and promoters for the movie in years to come, helping it remain relevant over time," he said. "This, in theory, should help it hold its value."
Lala is backed by a $3 million seed funding round from Seven Seven Six, a venture capital firm led by Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian. Vazquez said the startup decided to go with "The Wolf of Wall Street" for its inaugural NFT collection due to the movie's popularity in internet and pop culture.
"Time and time again, we see memes or quotes from the movie being used in conversations," he said. "It’s a movie that has incredible talent tied to it and its relevance has proven to be timeless over the past decade."
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