Chris Pratt said the shooting location for the winter scenes in Russia was on a glacier in Iceland that had never been filmed on before. He added that a few weeks prior to shooting, a couple bodies had been discovered down a fissure. They appeared to be preserved from about 1940. According to Icelandic reporter Ingunn Lára Kristjánsdóttir, there is no evidence that a couple was found on the glacier Skálafellsjökull, where Pratt was filming. In her reporting, she spoke with the chief of police in the South of Iceland and a police officer in the town of Höfn, where the crew stayed during filming. Both denied any knowledge with Pratt's version of events.
This film was made by Paramount Pictures for a theatrical release but due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Paramount sold the film to Amazon Prime Video for $200 million.
J.K. Simmons' (66 years old) much-talked-about 'buff old man' look in the movie, according to director Chris McKay, is actually based on Instagram pictures of Simmons that went viral in 2016 after his trainer Aaron V. Williamson posted them. The series of gym shots showed Simmons with a huge shaggy white beard, wearing a sleeveless muscle-shirt, doing intense bicep curls with his biceps bulging out incredibly. When it came to casting the role of the crazy but bad-ass father (of Chris Pratt) who is living off the grid, McKay said he immediately recalled the viral images, reached out to Simmons and asked him, "Hey, I don't know what shape you're in now. But if it's possible, I really want you to get to that jacked-up guy again and grow out your beard". Simmons said of the 2016 pictures, "That blew up after it was posted on Instagram". He nevertheless accepted the role as he was attracted by the challenge of building that body again. In the final film, Simmons puts his muscular arms on full display first in a tight bicep-hugging t-shirt and later on in a sleeveless muscle-shirt that shows off his biceps even more prominently.
On its first weekend of digital release in July 2021, it is estimated that the film was seen by 2.41 million households, making it the most watched Amazon Original movie to be tracked at that time.
J.K. Simmons at 66 years old shocked his much younger male co-stars with his muscular physique and bulging biceps. Chris Pratt (42 years old) said, "It was unbelievable. I was like, is that even possible? He's got prison muscles. I was like, 'Dude, where have you been? I can't tell you how many times I've talked about J.K's arms. He looks freakin' jacked in this movie. The J in J.K. stands for jacked. He's ripped." Edwin Hodge (36 years old) added Simmons put the buff young men in the film to shame saying, "He is very jacked. I hope I look that good at his age. It was pretty ridiculous. You could see all of his veins. His muscles were bigger than mine. And I thought I had big muscles at that time. He's a thoroughbred." Simmons was thrilled with the praise and said, "If nothing else comes from this movie, I'm happy!" Director Chris McKay added, "He was like Coney Island strongman stuff. You expected him to be crushing cans off his biceps." Simmons even received compliments from Pratt's wife and Arnold Schwarzenegger's daughter - Katherine Schwarzenegger who said, "Oh, my God, J.K. Simmons is jacked." Simmons responded, "That's all I need from Arnold's daughter."