In the scene where David Sumner (Dustin Hoffman) first enters the local pub, director Sam Peckinpah was unhappy with the other actors' reaction to this stranger entering their world. Eventually, he decided to do one take where Hoffman entered the scene without his trousers on. He got his reaction, and these are the shots shown in the final film.
The title comes from the Chinese philosopher Lao-tzu, who wrote, "Heaven and Earth are not humane, and regard the people as straw dogs." Straw dogs were used as ceremonial objects for religious sacrifices in ancient China.
Dustin Hoffman, not usually a fan of violent films, admitted that he only took the role in this movie for the money.
T.P. McKenna (Major John Scott) has his arm in a sling. This wasn't written in the script, McKenna had broken it while having a wild party with a couple of escorts, arranged by co-writer and director Sam Peckinpah.
Before shooting, co-writer and director Sam Peckinpah instructed Dustin Hoffman and Susan George to live together for two weeks, with co-writer David Zelag Goodman in tow. Some of their interactions during this period were worked into the film's script.
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