Christian Bale, Steve Carell, and Ryan Gosling Met Their IRL 'Big Short' Counterparts

Director Adam McKay (Anchorman, Step Brothers) ambitiously tackles the 2008 financial crisis in The Big Short, based on the best-selling book of the same name. A star-studded film featuring offbeat performances by Steve Carell, Christian Bale, Ryan Gosling, Brad Pitt, and more, the film revolves around the unlikely group of real-life guys who seek to cash in on the credit and housing collapse very few saw coming. The unconventional drama manages to make the world of finance entertaining and engaging. For instance: Margot Robbie (The Wolf of Wall Street) breaks the fourth wall — in a scene where she’s taking a bubble bath! — to explain some arcane insider jargon.

Yahoo Movies sat down with some of the stars of the film and found out that many of them spent time with the real men they play onscreen. Gosling, Bale, and Carell confirmed they took a level of artistic license with their respective portrayals — especially Gosling, who plays Deutsche Bank trader Greg Lippmann.

See what Gosling and his cast mates had to say about their IRL counterparts in the video above as The Big Short expands in theaters nationwide this week!