Bradley Whitford was allowed to use his own Camaro for the movie. It has the license plate "SO COOL," the actual license plate Bradley had on his car.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus auditioned for the lead role, but withdrew in favor of Jodie Foster. Foster also withdrew, leaving Michelle Pfeiffer, Valerie Bertinelli, Elisabeth Shue, and Justine Bateman as the only choices. Bateman withdrew from the project due to creative conflicts. Pfeiffer left the project and starred in The Witches of Eastwick (1987). Bertinelli lost out to Shue on the final day of auditions.
In both this film and Back to the Future Part III, Elizabeth Shue faints and says the line, "I had the worst nightmare!"
Sara wears a backpack with a picture of Gizmo on it. This is a reference to Gremlins (1984) which was written by Chris Columbus.
Sara's love of Marvel comics mirrors director Chris Columbus's. He wanted to be a comic book artist for Marvel at one point, but decided against it because it's an isolating existence and he preferred to work with people.