The Salesman (2016 film) make a film until he decided his protagonists should be stage actors. Part of this decision owed to Farhadi's own background in the theatre, and his desire to re-immerse himself in that atmosphere. He also felt actors had to think of themselves as other people and create empathy, and his male protagonist would be forced to feel empathy for another man. Looking for a play within the film, Farhadi researched the work of Jean-Paul Sartre and Henrik Ibsen before finding Arthur Miller's "Death of a Salesman", which he described as "a gift for me". In Miller's play and his script,
Waiting in the Wings (play) John Simon wrote: "A seemingly inconsequential piece... the play is a wise and compassionate address of the problems of aging and death that confront us all." Sheridan Morley wrote, "the play has moments of near-Chekhovian dignity and melancholy, and insights into the process of ageing for people who have made careers out of youth". Sybil Thorndike, who played Lotta, later said, "I loved that play. It's the most lovely modern play I've played... Mind you, it had that same cruelty that "The Vortex" had. My scene with my son was a very cruel scene really, but awfully funny". Waiting in