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  Besson employed an unusual post-production technique with the young actress. "We did the looping with Natalie while we were shooting, because she is growing so quickly. I was afraid that if I waited six months, her voice would change. I was right. She never acted in a movie before. And yet, she's so incredible. I explained. She listened. She would do it perfectly. It was so simple. And when she finished, she would forget it, and go off the set and play like any other 12-year-old kid. It was amazing." "She's fantastic, charming, clever, and talented." said her co-star Reno.    Casting Gary Oldman as DEA agent Norman Stansfield was a lot easier. "The costume designer introduced him to me. We kept missing one another, then finally we had dinner. Having dinner with Gary is like going to the circus. He had me in stitches. He said yes right away to the character and didn't want to read anything." Oldman knew enough about the role from Besson's description. "We even drew up a contract on the table cloth and since he wanted me to explain certain technical points for a movie he is going to direct, I sketched in travel shots and crane positions. Stansfield for me is the worst possible image of an adult and society", Besson says. Oldman agrees, saying, "He's a law unto himself basically, and totally heartless. The cover of the badge gives him the privilege to abuse just about everything. He does whatever he wants." Reno adds, "Stansfield is really bad, and you need that. Gary is able to have that strange, disturbing signal coming from inside. It gives you the chills."   Persuading Danny Aiello to take the part of Tony was the most difficult to finalise. Despite being a friend of a crew member, Danny hesitated. He seemed to have trouble with French director Besson having the audacity to try and make a New York movie. Being part of the very fabric of his beloved hometown, was not won over easily to the concept. "He was a little cold in the beginning to the idea of a French director making a New York movie, because he is the ultimate genuine New Yorker. But we kept talking about it over several days and several nights, and it all worked out well on the set. He was so generous and helpful. He's the capo who never leaves his restaurant." 
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