Deathball 2000 was an inside joke at the 1994 Pinball Expo. It was shown covered up during the Data East factory tour, and was just a cabinet at the time with no Playfield layout or artwork, just a backglass.

Also, I remember Jurassic Park having an advert for Last Action Hero on the DMD.

Robin, the game you're thinking about is Carousel, which is actually a redemption game Data East put out shortly after GNR.

I'd love to see modern Sterns put in shout outs to Pinside in the game software. In the mid 90s, Data East / SEGA did similar things with RGP, and it truly made the pinball community feel connected to these machines even if it was only in a minor way. It'd be cool to see these shout outs / Easter eggs done in the modern day.

So there's two reasons for Lethal Weapon 3 advertising TFTC:
1. It could have been under consideration for release before Star Wars
2. The game may have been updated to the latest ROM update (which changes Multiball to Tri-Ball among other features)