- Originally included an extended sequence for the song "The Meek Shall Inherit".
- The neon sign "CHOOZ" blinks the "OZ"; the director's surname.
- The bizarre equipment used by sadistic dentist Orin Scrivello has made numerous appearances in other Warner Bros. productions, notably as Jeremy Irons' gynecology tools in Dead Ringers (1988) and as the Joker's plastic surgeon's tools in Batman (1989). (Jack Nicholson (as the Joker in "Batman") and Bill Murray, in a twist, had both played the Arthur Denton patient in their respective films.)
- The scenes in which the two largest Audrey II puppets are performing with the actors are filmed at a lower speed. First at 16 frames per second, then at 12 frames per second for the final number. This means that the actors had to move and lip sync in slow motion.
- It supposedly took Steve Martin six weeks to film all his scenes.
- Bill Murray ad-libbed his lines.
- All the scenes were filmed entirely in, what was then, the largest studio set in the world, called 007 in London. They did not want to shoot on location, because it would ruin the fantastical mood of the film.
- The song "Some Fun Now" was adapted from the song from the Off-Broadway show "Ya Never Know." Four other songs were cut from the score and one, "Mean Green Mother From Outer Space" was written for the film.
- The puppeteers who designed and operated Audrey II were veterans of the Jim Henson company. One of the operators was 'Brian Henson (I)', Jim's son.
- For the scene during "Suppertime" when Mushnik is offering Seymour a way out, director Frank Oz originally wanted to use over-the-shoulder shots. But Rick Moranis and Vincent Gardenia kept cracking each other up so he had to use close-ups.
- The shot pulling away from Audrey after the song "Somewhere That's Green" was so long that it required two cranes, one placed on top of the other, to pull it off. The camera actually shifts a little when the one crane stops and the other takes over.
- Audrey's on-camera growth at the end of "Grow for Me" was achieved by placing the plant on a track concealed by the flower pot and then drawing it closer to the camera.
- Director Cameo: [Frank Oz] Salesman who tries to get Seymour to sign a contract during the song "The Meek Shall Inherit".
- Steve Martin cut his hands while filming the scene in which his character pushes open the double swinging doors to Audrey's apartment complex. As a result, in the final cut he is kicking the door open.
- Ellen Greene as Audrey (I) is the only member of the Off-Broadway cast to appear in this film.
- The opening lines of the finale "Don't feed the plants" are an homage to the final narration given by Criswell in Plan 9 from Outer Space (1959).
- The members of the film's "Greek Chorus" are all named after '50s/'60s girl groups: The Ronettes, The Chiffons and The Crystals.
- As part of the film's promotion, the "Audrey II" plant was occasionally interviewed, in character, by the press. On at least one occasion, the interview concluded with Audrey II "eating" the interviewer.
- The filmmakers originally offered the role of Audrey to Cyndi Lauper, before casting original stage star Ellen Greene. Madonna was also reportedly considered for the role.
- When producer David Geffen originally tried to get the film made, Steven Spielberg was attached to produce and Martin Scorsese to direct.
- The Voice of the Old Woman who begins the song "Downtown (On Skid Row)" is dubbed by Michelle Weeks, who plays Ronette.
- Final cinema film of 'Robert Ardern (I)'.
- Audrey, according to Alan Menken, is based on Judy Holliday's character of Billie Dawn in Born Yesterday (1950).
- Eddie Murphy was considered to voice Audrey II.
>>> WARNING: Here Be Spoilers <<<
Trivia items below here contain information that may give away important plot points. You may not want to read any further if you've not already seen this title.
- SPOILER: The tie-in trading card set released by Topps contains many shots of scenes now deleted from the movie. These includes images of the plants taking over New York; of Audrey (1) being eaten; and pieces of the deleted extended song sequence - all presented in full colour. The back of some of the trading cards could be put together to form a larger picture of the plants attacking the Brooklyn Bridge.
- SPOILER: The original ending featured extensive model shots of Audrey 2 wreaking havoc on the city to the song "Don't Feed the Plants". The ending was reshot after bad preview audience reaction.
- SPOILER: The original script called for Audrey and Seymore to be eaten by Audrey II. Frank Oz changed it after negative reactions.
- SPOILER: In 1998 the special edition DVD was released with the alternate "everybody dies" ending. A couple of days after its release the DVDs were yanked off the shelves and replaced with new ones that don't contain that ending. This is because producer David Geffen wanted to re-release the film in theaters with the gruesome ending, however the original color film print was destroyed in a studio fire shortly afterwards, leaving only the black & white workprint as proof of the ending's existence.
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