HBO’s ‘Industry’ Creators on Banking Culture, Risk, Fraud and Short Selling

2026-01-11

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In this special edition of WSJ’s Take On the Week, co-host Miriam Gottfried and WSJ banking reporter Alexander Saeedy go inside the high-stakes world of HBO’s financial television drama “Industry.” They are joined by Mickey Down and Konrad Kay, former bankers turned co-creators of the show, to unpack how real-world market dynamics inspire the series. Down and Kay reflect on their early careers at Morgan Stanley and Rothschild, and explain why season 4 shifts away from the fictional trading floor of Pierpoint to the ...

Down and Kay reflect on their early careers at Morgan Stanley and Rothschild, and explain why season 4 shifts away from the fictional trading floor of Pierpoint to the new frontiers of fintech, short selling and media.

The group compares the financial series’ plotlines to real-world reporting on 100-hour workweeks and the mental health toll on junior bankers. They also take a look at the gamification of finance—from meme stocks to Polymarket—how a new generation is redefining risk, and the "cult of personality" driving financial fraud.

Later, the creators weigh in on a hypothetical "cutthroat" trade: How would the show’s characters Harper Stern and Eric Tao play the Venezuela reopening trade?

Polymarket has a data partnership with Wall Street Journal parent Dow Jones.

This is WSJ’s Take On the Week where we cut through the noise and dive into markets, the economy and finance—the big trades, key players and business news ahead.

Have an idea for a future guest or episode? How can we better help you take on the week? We’d love to hear from you. Email the show at takeontheweek@wsj.com.

To watch the video version of this episode, visit our WSJ Podcasts YouTube channel or the video page of WSJ.com