At the top of his career from starring alongside Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman (1990), Richard Gere was earning millions of dollars per picture. Akira Kurosawa's company felt they were unable to pay his salary, to which Gere responded with "I'll work free for Kurosawa." Not wanting to take advantage of the actor, they offered him a modest sum, as well as offering to pay for all his travel expenses, including friends he wanted to bring with him to Japan while he worked. One of those friends included Cindy Crawford.
The sequence of the ants on the rose was shot by Ishirô Honda because Kurosawa didn't have the patience for it.
The film was based on the Kiyoko Murata novel "In the Stew" which Akira Kurosawa had read while filming Dreams (1990). He adapted it to a script in about 15 days.
One of three Akira Kurosawa films warning viewers of the dangers of nuclear power. The other two were I Live in Fear (1955) and Dreams (1990).