A 'Billions' co-creator explains how he cracked into the secretive world of hedge funds to make the show realistic

Showtime/ "Billions"

Bobby Axelrod, played by Damien Lewis, is a high-flying billionaire hedge fund manager.

• Brian Koppelman, co-creator of Showtime's 'Billions', spoke at an alt-data conference in New York and explained how he went about cracking into the highly secretive world of hedge fund managers so the show would be as realistic as possible.
• Koppelman and David Levien, who co-wrote 'Rounders' and 'Ocean's Thirteen', were able to make inroads through Kenny Dichter, the founder and CEO of subscription private-jet company Wheels Up.
• The success of the show, which in May 2019 was renewed for a fifth season, has led to more hedge fund managers coming forward to get involved, Koppelman said.
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When investigating someone, or something, it's often said your best bet is to follow the money.

But for Brian Koppelman, co-creator of Showtime's 'Billions', the key to learning more about hedge funds was to follow their private planes.

Koppelman and long-time writing partner and fellow 'Billions' co-creator David Levien were captivated by the world of hedge funds and the billionaires who operate as if they were a "nation state." But the duo, whose writing credentials include 'Rounders' and 'Ocean's Thirteen', at first had a tough time making inroads with the secretive group - which was key to making the show as realistic as possible.

"We were trying to think about who might have access and vouch for us to a set of people in whose interest it was not to tell two writers all their secrets," said Koppelman, who was speaking at an alternative data conference in New York last week.

Enter Kenny Dichter.

The founder and CEO of Wheels Up, the private jet membership company valued at over $1 billion, played basketball with Koppelman and Levien and vouched for the pair, connecting them with a handful of executives.

Koppelman and Levien were invited to sit in on morning meetings at some hedge funds, under the understanding the firms would remain anonymous. It didn't take long to realize they had a winner on their hands, Koppelman said.

"That's when we knew we really had to make the show," he said. "Seeing how smart and ruthless - and ruthless with each other - in the name of finding the best information, not illegal information but to finding the best information, was incredibly compelling. We thought if we could put that on television, people would be compelled by it also."

Koppelman and Levien's instincts were right, as the show, which journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin is also a co-creator, has had four seasons and was renewed for a fifth in May 2019.

The success of 'Billions' also led to a change in heart from the hedge fund world. An industry that previously seemed impenetrable has now proven to be almost too open and accessible, Koppelman said.

Following the first season, Koppelman said, five different billionaires approached the show's star Damien Lewis at the US Open to say that his character, hedge fund billionaire Bobby Axelrod, was based on them.

And while the industry's increased willingness to work with the show is good, Koppelman said they need to be careful about getting caught up in hedge fund managers' enthusiasm.

"They're all offering to fly us everywhere and take us to their sports teams game," he said. "You really have to be journalistic in the way in which you receive that stuff."

To be clear, while support for the show on Wall Street is strong, it doesn't come without some criticism.

Koppelman recalled one email he'd received from a "very, very famous hedge fund guy" who said the show was good but pointed out one inaccuracy.

"If you think I would get in that sardine can of a plane that Axe flies," Koppelman recalled the letter said. "If you're going to do billionaires, it has to be G6, motherf-----."

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