When you have a name actor, with a face that people recognise and a name that can go on posters or billboards and be able to appear on the talkshow circuit and tout the film, that's always a plus.

It happens a lot that a name actor will be signed on to a project in its germ stage.

Tim Burton, let's face it: he's into stitches.

A lot of people say to me, 'Is this good, to do to a Shakespeare piece?' And I think, 'You know, 'West Side Story' did it very cleverly, in a different way.' But if you look at 'Bonnie and Clyde,' 'Titanic,' 'Avatar,' 'Grease,' 'Brokeback Mountain'... they're all 'Romeo and Juliet' stories.

I think Shakespeare, at his heart, was just the way all of us are that make movies: He wanted to entertain people.

If you look at it, 'The Lion King' is very similar to 'Hamlet.'