It was not until he learned that Keaton was going through hard times (before Limelight, Keaton had gone through a disastrous marriage, lost most of his fortune in the divorce process, and had appeared infrequently in films in the preceding years) that Chaplin insisted Keaton be cast in the film.
Tako je bilo sve dok nije saznao kako Keaton prolazi kroz težak period (prije Svjetala pozornice, Keaton je prošao kroz katastrofalan brak, izgubio većinu imovine u razvodu, a rijetko se pojavljivao u filmovima), pa ga je Chaplin odlučio angažirati.