Yli 30 vuotta sitten Tim Burton keräili näyttelijöitä Batman-elokuvaansa varten. Jossakin vaiheessa John Lithgow oli vakavasti harkinnassa Jokeriksi. Näyttelijä piti asiaa vitsinä saatuaan Burtonilta ehdotuksen, ja onnistui vakuuttamaan ohjaajan siitä, ettei ole oikea valinta rooliin.
Myöhemmin Lithgow on tietenkin katunut valintaansa.
"I have never told anyone this story, but I tried to persuade him I was not right for the part, and I succeeded. I didn't realize it was such a big deal. About a week later I heard they were going after Robin Williams and Jack Nicholson."
"I was doing 'M. Butterfly' on Broadway and it was an exhausting show. It would have meant leaving that show and going right into a movie, and I said, 'I just don't think I can'. How about that for stupid? Actors are not necessarily smart people."
Kiitokset, Geek Tyrant