As in the 1942 feature, which was widely released in 1943 and won the Academy Award for Best Picture in March 1944, the main character is named Rick Blaine and is portrayed in 1983 by David Soul who was born in 1943. The role of French police captain Louis Renault, originated by Claude Rains, was assigned to Hector Elizondo, Sydney Greenstreet's black marketeer Ferrari was played by Reuven Bar-Yotam and Sacha the bartender, played in 1942 by Leonid Kinskey, a character actor usually seen in comical portrayals, was taken as a serious role by Ray Liotta.