Ever since the reveal of Detective Pikachu for the Nintendo 3DS, one often-heard joke was that Danny DeVito, known for his classic role as Frank Reynolds and his short stature, should play the role of Detective Pikachu. And as it turns out, he actually was partially used as inspiration for Detective Pikachu’s film-making process. [Thanks, Game Informer!]

According to Detective Pikachu producer Cale Boyter, “We definitely thought about it and how it might inform the spirit of it. Danny is incredible by the way. I am a huge fan of Danny DeVito.”

Using voice lines from various actors’, including DeVito’s, past roles, VFX producer Greg Baxter animated an early version of Pikachu to see how it looked in order to cast the right person.

According to Baxter, “It was really very funny, so I couldn’t speak to all the reasons why it wasn’t Danny DeVito cast. I love Danny and some point maybe after the movie comes about, we can share those early tests. It’s absolutely hilarious.”

Boyter left off with message that while he can’t reveal too much, “the spirit of Danny DeVito… is still inside of Pikachu.”

Pokémon: Detective Pikachu is set for release on May 10, 2019. The graphic novel releases in Summer 2019.