According to reports at the time of the movie's release, George Lucas had just built the $50-million Skywalker Ranch complex, and was counting on this film to get him back in the black. When it bombed, he was forced to start selling off assets to stay afloat. His friend Steve Jobs, the CEO of Apple Computer, offered to help by buying Lucasfilm's newly-launched CGI animation division for a price well above market value. Lucas, in dire straits and thankful for the assistance, agreed. That division eventually became Pixar Animation Studios.
In a Twitter comment, actress Lea Thompson confirmed that she still has the Les Paul guitar, "Cherry Bomb," and sometimes still plays it.
Following a test-screening, Universal executives Sid Sheinberg and Frank Price were allegedly arguing about who was to blame for green-lighting this film, which then ended in a fistfight.
Lea Thompson actually did the singing for all of the songs of her character's band, as did the other actresses in the group. On the 2009 DVD, she states that even during filming, the studio had not made a final decision as to whether to keep her singing voice or dub her.
For her 1980s-style look, Lea Thompson had to have her hair styled for about two hours each day. She admitted later that she was not very happy about the treatment, and should have worn a wig instead.