Alexander Avdeev (Russian ambassador in France who became Russian Culture Minister and who had been expelled from France in 1983 because of Farewell) blocked most Russian actors to play in this movie, including Sergey Makovetskiy and Nikita Mikhalkov, because he did not want to back a movie about a Russian traitor. He also blocked authorizations to film in Moscow, while most of the plot takes place in Moscow. Christian Carion had to pretend to film a Coca Cola advertisement for the few images of the city.
The character of Sergei Grigoriev (Emir Kusturica) was based on the real-life high-ranking KGB official Vladimir Vetrov.
The American President's oval office was recreated in a disused warehouse in in Lenin street (rue Lénine), Ivry-sur-Seine, the latter being a south-eastern suburb in Paris, France.
The poem referred to in the film was "The Death of the Wolf" (1843) (French: "La Mort du loup") by Alfred de Vigny.
Serbian actor Emir Kusturica, who portrays the character of Sergei Grigoriev, is also a famous Serbian film director, who has directed such acclaimed foreign films as Underground (1995), Time of the Gypsies (1988), Life Is a Miracle (2004), Black Cat, White Cat (1998), and When Father Was Away on Business (1985).