I Am Not Shazam: The dragon on the first book's cover is called Saphira, not Eragon. Eragon is the name of the boy who raises Saphira.
Film:
Blooper: Eragon shoots Durza in the forehead, but when Durza vanishes, the arrow is facing as if he was shot in the back of the head.
Breakaway Pop Hit: While the film failed both critically and financially (taking the careers of the director and the lead actor with it) and was promptly forgotten about, the song "Keep Holding On" became yet another hit for Avril Lavigne.
Creator Killer: The first and last movie directed by Stefen Fangmeier.
Disowned Adaptation: Christopher Paolini initially praised the film, specifically the performances of Jeremy Irons and Ed Speleers, but appears to have changed his tune over the years. Whenever the film is mentioned on Reddit, he either follows the meme of denying its existence or gently expresses his sympathy toward his fans who were disappointed by it.
Enforced Method Acting: Eragon's surprise when Brom comes up behind him when Eragon is looking through Brom's books for information about dragons was entirely genuine.
Fake Brit: Chris Egan is Australian putting on an English accent as Roran.
Ed Speleers was debuting in this movie as a promising newcomer, to the point he was nominated for Best Young Actor in the 2007 Saturn Awards regardless of the movie's quality. But sadly enough, his star film career both started and ended with it given how the feature and role turned out. He ended up rebounding on television, with a critically acclaimed turn in Downton Abbey and later appearing in the likes of Outlander and the fourth season of You. Both of which were followed by a major role in the final season of Star Trek: Picard.
Sienna Guillory looked to be on the verge of a breakout with Resident Evil: Apocalypse (despite its negative reviews, she was praised for her spot-on portrayal of Jill Valentine). This film's failure dented her momentum a bit, not helped by the flopping of Inkheart a couple of years later. She too eventually rebounded on television, with main roles in Fortitude and Stan Lee's Lucky Man.
Stillborn Franchise: The movie was a critical failure and a financial disappointment. It also made it next-to-impossible to create a film of the second book due to discontinuity created by the first film, not to mention the number of ignored characters that would need to be introduced.
Throw It In!: Saphira's infamous feathered wings were decided late in production after the effects team were inspired by Angel's wings in X-Men: The Last Stand.
Shia LaBeouf and Elijah Wood were considered for Eragon. It apparently came down to Ed Speleers and Alex Pettyfer. The latter was afraid of flying and reluctant to relocate to Hungary for filming, and so turned it down.
Emily Blunt was turned down for Arya. At one point Sienna Guillory was torn between doing this or Resident Evil: Extinction. She opted for Eragon, thinking it would be the more prestigious of the two. She later returned to the franchise in Resident Evil: Afterlife.
Christopher Paolini was going to have a cameo being beheaded in battle, but his European book tour prevented him from making the filming.
Eragon is the final Hollywood film to be released on VHS.
Video game:
Urban Legend of Zelda: The non-existing secret sword, which has somehow attained this status.
