Love Lucy be a key part of the film. Following Lucille Ball's death in 1989, Glimcher contacted her children Lucie Arnaz and Desi Arnaz, Jr., requesting the rights to use footage from the television series, but was denied by the two siblings. Shortly after, Universal dropped the film due to budget disputes. In 1990, Glimcher wrote a letter to Arnaz, Jr., asking that he reconsider, and the two men reached an agreement. The project was picked up by Warner Bros. after Glimcher met with the studio's president Terry Semel. Semel then introduced Glimcher to producer Arnon Milchan, whose production company Regency Enterprises agreed to co-finance the film with Warner Bros. and France's Le Studio Canal+, with the German-based studio Alcor Films enlisted as a co-producer. Casting Armand Assante and Antonio Banderas were Glimcher's ideal choices for the roles of Cesar and Nestor Castillo. Assante had appeared in a number of films but had not yet broken out as a major star. Banderas, an established Spanish actor, had moved to Los Angeles, California, hoping to make an international debut with his first English speaking role. Warner Bros. wanted to cast Jeremy Irons as Cesar and Ray Liotta as Nestor. Both actors had received critical acclaim for their respective performances in the 1990 films Reversal of Fortune and Goodfellas, and the studio felt that they would appeal to a wide audience. Through a translator, Glimcher told Banderas to work on improving his English for one month before performing a screen test opposite Irons. Banderas learned his lines phonetically and worked with a dialect coach during pre-production and filming. Although Warner Bros. loved Irons's screen test, Glimcher thought he was wrong for the part and insisted on Assante. The director felt that Assante had brought both charm and seductiveness to the role of Cesar, and the studio relented. Cathy Moriarty was the only actress that Glimcher considered for the role of Lanna Lake, based on her performance in Raging Bull (1980), where he explained that decision: "I wanted a woman rather than a girl. I wanted a character who had lived, who had scars, who had beauty and dignity. I thought of Cathy's life, and I thought of how it worked for the character as well". Annabella Sciorra was originally cast as Delores, but left the production due to a scheduling conflict. The role then went to Dutch actress Maruschka Detmers, who was