Whoopi Goldberg's Oscar-winning performance in "Ghost" almost didn't happen.
In a new interview, the actress revealed that she was initially turned down for the role, but the late Patrick Swayze stepped in and campaigned for her.
While speaking to Naomi Campbell on "No Filter With Naomi," Whoopi recalled a friend telling her, "Every Black woman and their mother went to this audition. Women got out of the grave for this audition."
At the time, Whoopi hadn't heard of the audition but called her manager to inquire.
"They don't want you," she remembered her manager saying. "They think that your persona is too big and will take people out of the movie."
Whoopi admitted that her feelings were hurt and didn't think she was "too big" for the role. Neither did Patrick, whom Whoopi had never met at the time.
Soon after, her phone rang.
"I get a call and [my agent] says, 'Remember that movie they didn't want you for? Well, the director and the actor want to come to wherever you are and see if there's a way to do this with you,'" Whoopi, 64, recalled.
During the conversation, she was told that Patrick had been cast as the lead character and he wanted to know why producers hadn't approached Whoopi for the role of psychic Oda Mae Brown. Patrick was quickly told the same thing that Whoopi had been told, that her on-screen presence might take away from other performances.
"Patrick said, 'I'm not saying yes to this piece until we know that she's not the right person, because this is ridiculous, she's perfect,'" Whoopi told Naomi. "I'd never met him but he was a fan."
Patrick and Whoopi had instant chemistry.
"You never know who's watching, you never know who remembers something about you. That was another great lesson," she said of the situation.
Patrick passed away in 2009 at the age of 57.