Originally, the role of Vincent Vega was written for Michael Madsen, but two weeks prior to the start of filming, he dropped out. So the producers decided to go after Daniel Day-Lewis. He’d just won an Oscar for My Left Foot and was a hot commodity.

They lobbied for him hard, and he actively pursued the role (along with Sean Penn and Willian Hurt), but ultimately, Tarantino wanted John Travolta. He got what he wanted, and Travolta’s career stopped it’s little tailspin.