The original title for the movie was "Sharkslayer", but it was changed to "Shark Tale" about a year before release, because Jeffrey Katzenberg thought the title might scare families away (the title still appears in some early promotional material). The change is clear in the movie, as in the song before the credits, the singers interlock between calling the movie "Sharkslayer" and "Shark Tale".
According to Hans Zimmer, he told producer Jeffrey Katzenberg that he could not deal with any more epic movies, but wanted to do a fun animated movie instead, and so he got the chance to compose for this movie.
When Don Lino is clearly seen for the first time (when he looks up from the aquarium), a mole can be seen near his right eye, a distinct facial feature of Robert De Niro.
When Oscar goes to the time clock, there is a note on the wall saying, "If you don't come in Saturday, don't bother..." This is a reference to a famous memo Jeffrey Katzenberg sent to executives while he was with Disney.