20 Things You Didn't Know About The Rocky Horror Picture Show
16. Director Jim Sharman Was Offered A Larger Budget To Cast Popular Musicians
The film was ultimately produced for $1.4 million - a paltry sum even in 1975 - but Fox originally offered writer-director Jim Sharman a much larger budget if he agreed to cast popular musicians, such as David Bowie, Lou Reed, and Cher, in the lead roles.
But Sharman, who also directed the stage version, was insistent that the original cast return for the film, and so accepted a far smaller budget while agreeing to cast American actors as Brad and Janet - eventually Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon respectively.
Though the film was ultimately produced under considerable time and financial constraints, Sharman credits its successful shoot to the stage cast who were already intimately familiar with the material.