Was writer-director Billy Wilder's first choice to play the lead in Das verlorene Wochenende (1945). The studio wanted Cary Grant or a comparable matinée idol in the lead. When it became apparent Paramount would not greenlight the film with Ferrer in the part, Wilder gave in and looked for a star, but the role was considered too unsympathetic and was rejected by most of the male stars of the day. Wilder finally cast Ray Milland in the part. A reluctant Milland, who was ambivalent about taking the part lest it hurt his career, won an Oscar. An actor's actor, Ferrer got his revenge five years later by copping his own Oscar for Der letzte Musketier (1950).
