After the success of Robert Altman's Nashville (1975), Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.'s novel was bought by Producer Dino De Laurentiis for Altman. Altman's cast for the film included Peter Falk as Hoover, Alice Cooper as his son Bunny, Sterling Hayden as Kilgore Trout, and Ruth Gordon as Eliot Rosewater (as Rosewater was to be portrayed as an old man, Altman thought it didn't matter that Gordon was a woman, as he believed gender differences were not as strong in the elderly). After the De Laurentiis-produced Buffalo Bill and the Indians or Sitting Bull's History Lesson (1976) flopped, the project went into turnaround.
In Eliot Rosewater's (Ken Hudson Campbell's) office, a self-portrait of author Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. can be seen among the paintings on the wall.
The lit circular arrow sign for "Exit 11 Motor Village" now exists on the north side of Barton's 93 Casino in Jackpot, Nevada. The picture of Bruce Willis has been replaced with the 93 logo.
The illustrations in the opening credits and notes written by Celia appear as drawn and written by Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. in his novel.
Alice Cooper was the original choice to play Bunny.