"Can I keep you?"
All these years later, that line still gives us all the feels. When it was released in May 1995, no one expected Casper to become one of the year's biggest hits. Made for $55 million, Casper, which starred Bill Pullman and a then-14-year-old Christina Ricci went on to gross $300 million and became one of Universal Studios' most beloved properties in the '90s. And the friendly ghost ended up haunting audiences in the best ways, going on to become one of spooky season's most iconic staples.
But did you know the original version didn't include movie-goers getting to meet the human version of Casper, played by Devon Sawa, who would go on to become one of the decade's biggest teen heartthrobs? Oh, and that infamous line wasn't in the initial script.
Helmed by first-time feature film director Brad Silbering and produced by Steven Spielberg, a lot of changes were made when the story of the world's friendliest ghost made the jump from the comic strip to the screen, including losing a beloved character who would later be played by Hilary Duff.
Here are 25 fun facts you might not know about Casper, including the surprising person who re-wrote the ending, the secret on-set crush, all of the scenes that were cut to keep the budget down and the failed attempt to make a sequel...
(Originally published on Tuesday, May 26, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. PT)