How Quentin Tarantino Locked In John Travolta For The Role Of Vincent Vega

Quentin Tarantino and Mike Simpson held firm on their demand to cast John Travolta in "Pulp Fiction," and according to Simpson in the Vanity Fair interview, they finally got what they wanted in a late-night phone call with Harvey Weinstein: "At midnight our time, three in the morning in New York, Harvey said, 'Let's just close the deal, and we'll address that tomorrow in good faith.'" Then, Simpson recalled for the publication, he countered Weinstein by saying, "You're going to agree to it right now, or there's no deal. We've got two other buyers waiting outside to get this."

According to Vanity Fair, one of them was Live Entertainment, the company that produced Tarantino's first feature film, "Reservoir Dogs." And with that, the clock began to rapidly tick on Weinstein and his executive brother, Bob. Recalling their conversation for Vanity Fair, Simpson told Weinstein, "'You've got 15 seconds to agree to it. If I hang up, it's over.' Harvey kept talking, arguing, and I said, 'O.K., 15, 14.' When I got to eight, Bob goes, 'Harvey, we have to say yes.' Harvey says, 'O.K., f*** it.'"

According to Vanity Fair, Richard N. Gladstein — Tarantino's longtime collaborator who served as a co-executive producer on "Pulp Fiction" — recalled hearing Weinstein joke 20 minutes into screening the completed film, saying, "I'm so glad I had the idea to cast John Travolta."

The actor received a best actor Oscar nomination for playing Vincent Vega, but undoubtedly the biggest prize was that "Pulp Fiction" saved Travolta's failing career. As for the film itself, "Pulp Fiction" easily is high on the list of every Tarantino film ranked from worst to best.