During production of the 1995 science fiction film Virtuosity, Denzel Washington objected to a romantic sequence involving his character and co-star Kelly Lynch's psychiatrist, refusing to perform the scene despite having already accepted the lead role. Washington explained his decision by asserting that predominantly white male audiences would be uncomfortable watching a Black man in a romantic relationship with a white woman, a concern he believed reflected genuine audience preferences.

Lynch challenged Washington's reasoning by pointing to The Bodyguard, which had recently succeeded at the box office with Kevin Costner and Whitney Houston in a similar interracial romance. Washington rejected the analogy, maintaining that Costner's position as a white lead actor created a fundamentally different scenario. Unable to persuade him otherwise, the production removed the romantic subplot entirely and restructured the narrative, substantially diminishing Lynch's character's arc and role in the film.