Anthony Michael Howe was originally scheduled to play the soldier clown, but because he opposed Stanley Kubrick's perfectionist directorial style, he was fired and replaced by Matthew Modine.
Former U.S. Navy training instructor Elmy was hired as a consultant. He demonstrated the use of obscene and insulting words in the videotape, and he did it in one go without pause and repetition for 15 minutes. Director Stanley Kubrick was also impressed by him, so he decided to let him play the artillery instructor Hartman.
Vincent Donofeo gained 70 pounds in order to play the role of the soldier Lawrence.
In some shots, the rock in the background resembles a monolith in the movie "2001: A Space Odyssey" shot by Stanley Kubrick in 1968. Kubrick said that this was not intentional, but he noticed it while watching the movie samples.
Elmi, who plays the instructor, can't blink her eyes in almost all scenes.
Stanley Kubrick’s daughter Vivienne Kubrick has a cameo in a scene in Vietnam, where the clown and Raftman encounter some open tombs. Vivienne can be seen holding a mobile camera and shooting at the tomb.
In the first part of the movie, there are a series of scenes about military training in the barracks. In order to ensure that every soldier on the screen can be in focus, a special lens is designed. Kubrick’s intention is that no one is special and they should be treated equally.
