Chris Tucker did not reprise his role of Smokey from the original film because he'd become a born again Christian after filming Money Talks - Geld stinkt nicht (1997) and chose to do the Rush Hour series instead. His character is referenced throughout the film to explain his absence.
There is a poster for The Players Club (1998) in Day-Day's bedroom. The Players Club was written and directed by (and co-stars) Ice Cube.
When Joker says "Pass the wire!" and "Don't look at me, Little Puppet!", he is actually quoting lines from Das Gesetz der Gewalt (1992), a movie in which he played Edward James Olmos's younger brother, Pablito.
According to an earlier script, Michael Jordan was originally going to be in the gas station bathroom instead of Stanley.