DVD RELEASE DATE: December 1st, 1998 (USA)
BOX OFFICE OPENING: $14.3 million (USA)
BOX OFFICE RESULT: $48.2 million (USA)
BUDGET: $50 million (USA)
- Jodie Foster was originally going to star, but was dropped from what she viewed as firm commitment from PolyGram (the same company her own production company, Egg Pictures, is affiliated with). She sued PolyGram. The case was settled before trial for an undisclosed amount.
- Nicholas's "San Francisco" home was actually the historic Filoli Mansion, 25 miles south of San Francisco in Woodside, California. The plain gravel forecourt of the mansion was made to look more like a wrap-around driveway by the addition of the fountain, which was constructed of lightweight foam. The interior shots of the kitchen were made in the original time-worn kitchen, which is displayed on tours but no longer used. The kitche's state of repair is not good, which partially accounts for the very dim lighting used in the kitchen scenes. The scenes in which the walls were defaced with graffiti was done by tacking up lightweight graffiti-painted foamcore boards over the wood paneling. All of the scenes at the mansion were completed in one day.
- Linda Manz, who appeared in Terrence Malick's Days of Heaven (1978) appears early in the film as Christine's roommate Amy. Later in the film, when Michael Douglas goes into the Chinese restaurant, there is an autographed still of Manz in Days of Heaven on the wall.
- Douglas' character was also named 'Nick' in Basic Instinct (1992) and Black Rain (1989).
- In the restaurant scene, where Nicholas first meets the waitress that he spends the whole movie following, "Claire de Lune" is played in the background. At the end of the game, the waitress reveals her name to be Claire.
- The real Game, which inspired the movie, was itself inspired by Midnight Madness, which starred Michael J. Fox.
- The online game "Majestic" by www.ea.com is based on the idea of this movie.
- When Nicholas enters his suit at the Hotel Nikko, adult film star Tony Tedeschi is briefly visible on television.
- The equipment needed to solve the real Game has become, in recent years, increasingly high-tech. Palm Pilots, pocket PCs, wireless Internet connections and portable photocopiers are a given. One year a snorkel, mask and a wet suit were required to locate a clue tied to a rock at the bottom of the lake. Another time, tuxedos were necessary so that a clue could be surreptitiously solved in the midst of a format banquet.
WRITERS: John D. Brancato and Michael Ferris.
PRODUCERS: Cean Chaffin and Steve Golin.
CO-PRODUCER: John D. Brancato and Michael Ferris.
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Jonathan Mostow.
ORIGINAL MUSIC: Howard Shore.
DISTRIBUTOR: PolyGram Filmed Entertainment.
Nicholas: There goes a thousand dollars.
Christine: Your shoes cost a thousand dollars?
Nicholas: That one did.
Conrad: I've been here before
Nicholas: I took you here for your birthday.
Conrad: No, I used to buy crystal meth from the Maitre D.
Nicholas: You shouldn't have.
Conrad: What do you get for the man who has...everything?
Nicholas: "Consumer Recreation Services." Well, I do have golf clubs...
Conrad: Call that number.
Nicholas: Why?
Conrad: Make your life...fun.
Nicolas: Fun.
Conrad: You know what that is...uh, you've seen other people have it.