Oscar was the followup Max Bialystock after Lane left the Broadway company in spring 2002. Oscar exits the St. James on Broadway Dec. 12 for a January bow on the West End. John Treacy Egan takes on Max in New York until character actor Richard Kind jumps into the role (earlier than expected) Dec. 21.

Alan Ruck, who was a castmate of Kind's on TV's "Spin City," joins the Broadway company as Leo Boom Jan. 11, 2005, following his stint on the national tour of the smash.

Lane won the 2001 Tony Award for his work as the sleazy but lovable producer. He got raves again when he was the last-minute replacement for Richard Dreyfuss this fall in the West End premiere. The role was too physically challenging for Dreyfuss, the actor and producers announced.

Brad Oscar's association with The Producers began when he played Nazi musical comedy writer Franz Liebkind. He was Tony-nommed for it. He graduated to Max, played him on Broadway and went out on tour as well — only to return to the St. James in the past year.

Lane is returning to the U.S. for pre-production work on the filn version of The Producers, to co-star Matthew Broderick, Will Ferrell and Nicole Kidman.