Billy Bob Thornton revealed he was cut from the movie Misery, but it was done in a “cool” way. In an interview for Variety, the actor told Kathy Bates that he was originally cast for the iconic film that she starred in 35 years ago.

Rob Reiner's Misery is a great movie with a number of fantastic behind-the-scenes tales – including the fact that a significant collection of big actors were offered and turned down the role of Paul Sheldon before James Caan said "yes" (the list including Robert Redford,

Thornton's revelation comes after three decades of knowing Bates. They first shared the screen in 1998's Primary Colors, the Mike Nichols dramedy about a presidential campaign. Eighteen years later, they would reunite for Bad Santa 2. But according to Thornton, they could have starred together in a movie as early as 1990.