According to Jackie Earle Haley, when Jean-Louis Trintignant slaps him in the face, Trintignant really slapped him hard. Two takes were filmed and Trintignant slapped for real both times.
The French crew came to Los Angeles to prepare another movie, but the project collapsed. They decided to do a movie anyway, so the script for this film was written in 12 days and shot while the crew's work visas were still valid.
The cast includes four Oscar nominees: Roy Scheider, Ann-Margret, Talia Shire and Jackie Earle Haley.