The title is a nod to Tupac Shakur's song "Changes," which features the line, "Learn to see me as a brother instead of two distant strangers." (The song "That's the Way it Is" by Bruce Hornsby and the Range upon which "Changes" is based is a recurring tune in the film.) Tupac's quote is featured at the very end of the credits.
During the 'ride along' scene, Carter mentions that a scene in a movie with Kevin Hart was a 'lie.' The movie in question is Ride Along (2014).
In April 2021 filmmaker Cynthia Kao posted on social media site TikTok a short message highlighting the perceived similarities between Two Distant Strangers (2020) and her own short film Groundhog Day for a Black Man (2016), noting that NowThis is credited as a production company on the former and that NowThis was also involved in distributing and promoting her own short back in 2016. Two Distant Strangers' writer Travon Free has responded on social media and in the Washington Post denying any allegations of plagiarism, stating that his film is based on his own experience and inspired by the Bill Murray film Groundhog Day (1993), not by Cynthia Kao's short.
Netflix's first short film to win the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film.
Around 23:41 into the short film, the name 'George Floyd' can be read on a building's roof. George Floyd was a 46 years old African-American who was killed by police officer Derek Chauvin on May 25th, 2020. Early on the short, when Carter is first assaulted, he yells out the phrase "I can't breathe!" several times. The same words were uttered by Mr. Floyd previous to his demise.
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