Jonah Hill made his film debut in the 2004 independent black comedy āI Heart Huckabeesā directed by David O. Russell. The film received mostly positive reviews from critics and earned a 62% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. In 2005, he starred in the American romantic comedy film āThe 40-Year-Old Virginā directed by Judd Apatow. The film opened to a positive reception and was a major financial success, grossing over $177.4 million on a budget of $26 million. He continued to star in films like āGrandma's Boyā (2006), āAcceptedā (2006), āRocket Scienceā (2007), āKnocked Upā (2007), āSuperbadā (2007), āStrange Wildernessā (2008), āHorton Hears a Who!ā (2008), āFunny Peopleā (2009), āThe Invention of Lyingā (2009), āCyrusā (2010), āHow to Train Your Dragonā (2010), and āMegamindā (2010). He portrayed āPeter Brandā in the 2011 American sports drama film āMoneyballā directed by Bennett Miller. The film saw critical acclaim upon release and performed well at the box office, grossing over $110.2 million on a $50 million budget. Hill also received several award nominations, including āAcademy Awardā and āBAFTA Awardā nominations, for his performance in the film. The following year, he starred as āMorton Schmidtā in the American satirical buddy cop action comedy film ā21 Jump Streetā directed by Phil Lord and Christopher Miller. The film received positive reviews from critics and grossed over $201.6 million at the box office.Ā
Hill received his second āAcademy Awardā nomination for his portrayal of āDonnie Azoffā in the 2013 American biographical black comedy crime film āThe Wolf of Wall Streetā directed by Martin Scorsese. The film garnered wide praise from critics and was a major financial success, grossing over $392 million on a budget of $100 million. He went on to star in films such as āThe Lego Movieā (2014), āHow to Train Your Dragon 2ā (2014), ā22 Jump Streetā (2014), āTrue Storyā (2015), āSausage Partyā (2016), āWar Dogsā (2016), āThe Lego Batman Movieā (2017), āDon't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Footā (2018), āHow to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden Worldā (2019), āThe Lego Movie 2: The Second Partā (2019), and āThe Beach Bumā (2019). He was last seen playing the role of āJason Orleanā in the 2021 American apocalyptic satire film āDon't Look Upā directed by Adam McKay. The film had the critics divided with one side praising the humor and performance of the cast while others calling it a smug satire film.