Johnny Stecchino and wife Maria are played by Roberto Benigni and Nicoletta Braschi, who are married in real life.
After the film, a novel of the same name was written by Benigni and Vincenzo Cerami which was published the same year
The film grossed 42,000,000,000 lire, which earned it first place in the 1991-92 film chart
The scenes set at the Teatro Massimo of Palermo were actually shot at the Teatro Massimo Vincenzo Bellini in Catania, being the first one under renovation at time of filming.
The idea of a powerful man who attempts to trade places with an identical double when people want to kill him is reminiscent of the Louis XVI segment in History of the World: Part I (1981).