The Chicxulub asteroid Kate Dibiasky mentions hit Earth 66 million years ago in what is now the Gulf of Mexico. The estimated size of the asteroid was 10 kilometers (six miles) wide and resulted in 75% of all life on the planet dying. Known as the dinosaur killer, the asteroid left a crater estimated to be 150 kilometers (93 miles) in diameter and 20 kilometers (12 miles) in depth.
Jennifer Lawrence filmed most of her scenes with a broken tooth, and due to restrictions in place during the COVID-19 pandemic, she could not get it fixed. The missing tooth was added in post-production.
To convincingly play his character, Leonardo DiCaprio spoke with real-life astronomer and film consultant Amy Mainzer. According to Adam McKay, DiCaprio had long conversations about the real mathematics behind it and got about six months of quality education on orbital dynamics.
It was Jonah Hill's idea for his character to carry a Birkin bag everywhere, as he and the filmmakers thought it would add an absurdist touch if the President's chief of staff carried nuclear codes around in a $30,000 bag (originally inspired by British actress Jane Birkin as designed by Hermès of Paris).
(at around 20 mins) President Orlean mispronounces Dr. Oglethorpe's name as Ogilvy. Ogilvy was the name of the astronomer in H.G. Wells' "The War of the Worlds" who first spots the launch of the Martian invasion.