Originally Fred was going to be played by Sting, but due to commitments to his solo career and David Lynch's Dune (1984), he eventually backed out of the film.
Subway (1985) returned over $22 million at the box office on an investment budget of $2.6 million. It was the 3rd most popular film in France in 1985, after 3 hommes et un couffin (1985) and Les Spécialistes (1985). It attracted 2,920,588 cinema-goers. The film grossed $390,659 at the box office in the United States.
The soundtrack sold 100,000 copies in France.
One of many collaborations between Jean Reno and Luc Besson. They also worked in Le Dernier Combat (1983), The Big Blue (1988), Nikita (1990) and Léon: The Professional (1994).