To cut down on the budget, the scene where Kersey goes to the cinema to meet Nathan was actually filmed at The Cannon Group, Inc.'s viewing theater.
Gail Morgan Hickman re-wrote the entire script while filming. Charles Bronson constantly had problems with the dialogue and he requested further rewrites of certain items of dialogue and action scenes. Hickman recalled going through several rewrites on a daily basis.
Gail Morgan Hickman wrote three different scripts for the film. The first featured Paul Kersey struggling with a crisis of conscience and trying to reconnect with Geri Nichols from Death Wish II (1982). It was rejected because Jill Ireland faced her own struggle with breast cancer and was unwilling to reprise her role. The second had Kersey going after an international terrorist and was rejected due to another upcoming film, Wanted: Dead or Alive (1986). The final script had the premise of Kersey playing two gangs against each other. Hickman was influenced by the use of this premise in Yojimbo (1961) and A Fistful of Dollars (1964).
Media Home Entertainment released the film on video in April 1988, having agreed with Cannon to a $2-million advance. Over 100,000 cassettes were sold to rental stores. It was the best-selling entry of the series in the video market.
The video store where Kersey confronts some of the goons shows numerous posters and displays promoting such other Cannon releases as Field of Honor (1986), The Naked Face (1984), and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986). A movie theatre in the film shows a curious pairing: Otello (1986) and Runaway Train (1985).