Auditions for the title role spanned two years, 22 cities, 8,000 interviews, and 70 actresses. Nine young actresses made it to the second round.
Steve Martin was offered the role of Rooster. He turned it down when he heard he would be working alongside Bernadette Peters. They were breaking up at the time, and he felt it would be too painful to work with her for several months.
Production designer Dale Hennesy died in the middle of production. Gene Callahan agreed to finish the movie, but refused to have his name listed in the credits, giving the credit to the late Hennesy.
Albert Finney shaved his head to play Oliver "Daddy" Warbucks. When she met him at the movie's premiere, Aileen Quinn didn't recognize him at first, because his hair had grown back.
John Huston: The voice on Miss Hannigan's radio saying, "I love you, I love you, I love you," just before "Little Girls".