Valeria Golino claims the scene in which she catches an olive popped out of her bellybutton was accomplished without trick photography.
The aircraft carrier on which the movie takes place is actually a wooden deck built on the edge of a cliff at a deserted Marineland facility. The film was shot at an angle that made the deck look like a ship at sea.
The role of Admiral Benson was first offered to Leslie Nielsen, who declined and is reported to have told director Jim Abrahams "I think I've done enough spoof movies with you," which, if true, would be very interesting given that Nielsen would star in The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear (1991) that same year. The role was then offered to Lloyd Bridges, who had also appeared with Nielsen in Abrahams' Airplane! (1980).
Charlie Sheen remarks before a particularly energetic fight sequence, "I learned this one from Paula Abdul." Paula Abdul was married to Charlie Sheen's brother, Emilio Estevez, at the time of the film's release.