Oliver! (film) in the United States, and Oliver Reed, who played Bill Sikes, had just begun to make a name for himself. Producer John Woolf suggested Oliver Reed for the role to the director Reed, without knowing that the two were in fact related. Ron Moody, who was also well known in Britain but not the US, recreated his London stage performance, after Peter Sellers, Dick Van Dyke and Peter O'Toole reportedly turned down the role. Elizabeth Taylor turned down the role of Nancy as well. Julie Andrews was also considered. Director Reed also had Shirley Bassey in mind, but his choice
Oliver! (film) problem for children, who are not used to long films, he loved the production design, musical adaptation score, and casting and acting, particularly that of Ron Moody and Jack Wild. He concluded, ""Oliver!" succeeds finally because of its taste. It never stoops for cheap effects and never insults our intelligence. And because we can trust it, we can let ourselves go with it, and we do. It is a splendid experience." He later named the film as the seventh best film of 1968. Rotten Tomatoes awards the film an 81% "fresh" rating based on 30 reviews, with an average score