Plot and Structure The film follows Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas), newly released from prison after serving time for insider trading, as he tries to reconnect with his estranged daughter Winnie (Carey Mulligan) and broker a relationship with young trader Jacob Moore (Shia LaBeouf). Jacob, whose mentor and future father-in-law is the successful hedge-fund manager Louis Zabel (Frank Langella), becomes embroiled in insider-driven schemes and faces the moral fallout when Zabel is financially destroyed. Gekko manipulates this chain of events to re-enter high finance, driven by both opportunism and a desire to make amends with Winnie.