Kerr Smith (Jack McPhee) and Joshua Jackson (Pacey Witter) are the only two series regulars to direct an episode during the show's six season run.
In season one, episode seven, Detention (1998), Dawson (James Van Der Beek) compares the group's Saturday detention to Clube dos Cinco (1985). He mentions the cast are now languishing in television obscurity. Pacey (Joshua Jackson) then mentions Emilio Estevez from the film, saying "He was in those duck movies, remember? God those were classics. So funny." Jackson appeared in all three "Mighty Ducks" films with Estevez.
Many props from creator Kevin Williamson's Pânico (1996) and Eu Sei o que Vocês Fizeram no Verão Passado (1997) are used, particularly in Dawson's bedroom.
Paula Cole's "I Don't Want To Wait" was not the first choice for the show's theme song. Executive producer Paul Stupin originally wanted Alanis Morissette's "Hand In My Pocket" as the theme, however, the song was too expensive to use so Cole's song was chosen as the broadcast theme. Stupin also commissioned songs from Canadian folk artist Jann Arden, whose song "Run Like Mad" was written specifically for the show, which was used as an alternate theme for DVD releases after the third season when the studio did not want to pay additional royalties. The Arden song was also used in every streaming episode of the show on Hulu, except the last two episodes ("All Good Things..." and "Must Come to an End"). In 2021, Cole recorded a new version of "I Don't Want To Wait" to avoid royalty issues with the original master, which Netflix restored as the theme song.