In the DVD extras, Hugh Grant says that because he and James Wilby already knew each other from appearing in I privilegiati (1982) together, they were able to practice their scenes together at Grant's house the night before Wilby's audition. Grant says that he remembers it "being a surprise to my banker brother when he came home and found me kissing James Wilby in the front room."
James Wilby recalls on the DVD extras that there were no rehearsals at all for the movie, only two reads-through, and then the start of filming.
Hugh Grant and Rupert Graves have said several times that they owe their theatrical success for their performances in Maurice.
King's College, Cambridge, permitted the production to film there after much consideration. The delay was not over the movie's subject matter, but due to the fact that many scholars consider Forster's novel an inferior work.
Julian Sands was chosen for the title role, but was delayed on another movie, Siesta (1987). Wilby had previously been passed over for a smaller role because it was felt his height and blond hair were too close to Sands' appearance.