Producer David Heyman was inside the Body Bag being taken down the Stairlift at the start of the film
Leslie Phillips spoke out against this movie after it was released, as he said it had been completely changed, from the story he and the other elderly actors were making, about an old people's home, in order to concentrate on the relationship between Sir Michael Caine and the boy.
Michael Caine was at his kitchen table having breakfast when his wife, Shakira, came in with the script in tears and slammed it down in front of him and said, " You're doing this one." Caine then read the script three times and wept each time and immediately agreed to do the film.
This film was made on a tight budget and the producers did not expect a star of Michael Caine's stature to accept the role due to the limited appeal of the film and the restricted finances. However Caine liked the script and said it was a story he felt needed to be told hence why he accepted it.