Robert De Niro wanted to play the role of Jack Lint, but Terry Gilliam had already promised this to Sir Michael Palin. De Niro still wanted to be in this movie, so he was cast as Harry Tuttle instead.
Terry Gilliam was asked to do a film class during the filming of this movie at the University of Southern California. Terry agreed, and took advantage of the situation by preparing to bring an "audio visual aid", which was his cut of the movie, which would have been allowed. Unfortunately, two days before the event, students advertised a free screening of the movie. When he arrived, it was announced that Universal Pictures would not allow him to show it. During his speech to the class, he was interrupted by studio executives' phone calls. They eventually allowed him to show a clip. He showed the entire movie, and repeated the screenings for over two weeks. It was during one of these screenings, that Los Angeles, California movie critics saw it, and awarded it the Best Picture of the Year award, which was responsible for getting it released the way Gilliam wanted it.
The second in Terry Gilliam's "Trilogy of Imagination". The first was Os Bandidos do Tempo (1981), and the third was As Aventuras do Barão Munchausen (1988). All three movies are about escapes from an awkward, ordered society, seen through the eyes of a child, a man in his thirties, and an elderly man.
Writer and director Terry Gilliam and his crew were excited to have Robert De Niro on board at first, but as time wore on, they found De Niro's need for "research" and obsession with details increasingly irritating, with Gilliam saying that he "wanted to strangle him".
Despite the problems Terry Gilliam had directing Robert De Niro, De Niro said he had a wonderful time on the production and would gladly work with Gilliam again.
Holly Gilliam: Jack Lint's (Sir Michael Palin's) daughter Holly was played by Terry Gilliam's daughter.
Jack Purvis: A regular in the movies of Terry Gilliam, Purvis appeared as "Dr. Chapman", a reference to fellow Python Graham Chapman, who had a medical degree.