This is the second time Kathy Bates has a leading role in a movie based on a Stephen King work. The first was her Oscar-winning role as Annie Wilkes in Misery (1990). King was impressed with Bates after meeting her on the set of "Misery," and wrote the character of Dolores Claiborne with her in mind. Bates also made an uncredited cameo appearance as Rae Flowers, in the TV mini-series adaption of Stephen King's The Stand (1994).
Christopher Plummer's character, Inspector John Mackie, sports a prominent scar on the bridge of his nose. According to the director, Taylor Hackford, he wanted Mackie to look disheveled and careworn, so he asked his costume designer to put him in the worst suits she could find, but without success. Plummer quietly approached Hackford and said, "Taylor, it's impossible for me to look bad in a suit, that's just the way I'm built. But let me do something that will change all that. I'll break my nose." Plummer took an eye-brow pencil and drew a line across the bridge of his nose, and then shaded it to create the illusion of an ugly, permanent scar. Upon seeing the result, Hackford was astounded by Plummer's transformed appearance: "My desired image of Inspector John Mackie suddenly materialized before my eyes."
Director Taylor Hackford about whether Kathy Bates and Jennifer Jason Leigh were in sync:
"Not at the beginning. Both are really experienced. Kathy is one generation away from Jennifer and therefore had a lot of stage experience before. Remember, though, Jennifer started working as a young girl. She comes from a movie family. I think her first film was when she was 15. She's had a lot of experience also. . .
They did have different styles but they both understood - like any good actor - that you don't do a scene alone. We did rehearse a bit. It took a little time for them to find the dance step and get their rhythm right. They do have different styles. But it wasn't at all unusual for me to see Kathy standing behind the camera giving Jennifer off-camera lines and crying. Each of them was so touched by the other. They don't have to do this. But they were totally committed to each other."
They did have different styles but they both understood - like any good actor - that you don't do a scene alone. We did rehearse a bit. It took a little time for them to find the dance step and get their rhythm right. They do have different styles. But it wasn't at all unusual for me to see Kathy standing behind the camera giving Jennifer off-camera lines and crying. Each of them was so touched by the other. They don't have to do this. But they were totally committed to each other."
Judy Parfitt was recommended for the role of Vera by director Taylor Hackford's wife, Helen Mirren. Parfitt, who had largely confined her career to the stage, was virtually unknown to film audiences at the time. After she auditioned with Kathy Bates, Bates reportedly turned to Hackford and gasped "Who was that?" They agreed to cast Parfitt on the spot.