With dozens of roles in movies and TV over the course of decades, there’s no shortage of titles from which veteran actor Luis Guzman can be recognized. However, oddly enough, the one that he gets approached about the most is for a character he never even played. That would be the Ghost villain Willie Lopez, played by late actor Rick Aviles. In the film, Willie murders Patrick Swayze’s character, making him one of pop culture’s most reviled antagonists.

Over two decades after the movie’s release, Guzman is pretty much guaranteed to be mistaken for Willie if he so much as takes a trip to the grocery store. The actor spoke about the confusion during a recent interview for The Rich Eisen Show, and while it sounds like it’s something that’s happened countless times for many years, Guzman seems to have a sense of humor about the whole thing. After debunking the rumors that he was in consideration for the role, Guzman reveals that he “frequently” gets confused with Aviles’ Ghost character to this very day.

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Guzman also explains how he’d usually correct people, but this would lead to an awkward interaction with an elderly woman. When she refused to believe he was in another movie she’d seen, Guzman decided that life would just become much easier if he would no longer object, taking credit for the role that he didn’t play if that’s what makes people happy.

“I never had that part. I never even auditioned… To this day, you and I could be walking through an airport, through a mall. Today. And someone [would say], ‘Why’d you kill Patrick Swayze? What was it like working with Whoopi?’ Honestly, if I got a nickel since that began, I’d probably own this studio, an island, and a couple of private planes, I swear… Don’t ask me how that happened.”

“I was in Detroit one time, changing planes. 90-year-old lady comes up to me, ‘Oh my god, I loved you in Ghost!’ I felt so bad. I explained, ‘No, that was someone else.’ And then she goes, ‘Well, what might I have seen you in?’ And I go, ‘You ever see The Count of Monte Cristo?’ ‘I love that movie, that was such a great movie!’ I said, ‘Well, I was Jacopo.’ And then she goes, ‘No, you wasn’t in that!’ So, it was from that moment on that I say, you know what, I’m always gonna be the guy in Ghost. ‘I loved you in Ghost!’ ‘Hey, thanks.’”

Maybe He’ll Be Recognized More Often for Wednesday

     Netflix  

These days, Guzman can be seen playing Gomez Addams, father to Jenna Ortega’s titular character in Netflix’s Wednesday. The series has become an instant hit for Netflix, managing to surpass Stranger Things 4’s record as the most-streamed series in one week’s time since its premiere. Given the popularity of the series, perhaps Guzman will start getting recognized more often for Gomez, a role he actually portrays.

Wednesday is streaming on Netflix.