To explain financial instruments, the film features cameo appearances by actress Margot Robbie, chef Anthony Bourdain, singer-songwriter Selena Gomez, economist Richard Thaler, and others who break the fourth wall to explain concepts such as subprime mortgages and synthetic collateralized debt obligations. The film stars Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling and Brad Pitt, with John Magaro, Finn Wittrock, Hamish Linklater, Rafe Spall, Jeremy Strong, and Marisa Tomei in supporting roles. Co-written by Charles Randolph, it is based on the 2010 book The Big Short: Inside the Doomsday Machine by Michael Lewis showing how the 2007–2008 financial crisis was triggered by the United States housing bubble. The Big Short is a 2015 American biographical crime comedy-drama film directed and co-written by Adam McKay.
