Trivia / Four Rooms

• Box Office Bomb: Budget, $4 million. Box office, $4,257,354.
• Fake Nationality: Spanish actor Antonio Banderas as the Mexican gangster.
• Uncredited Role: Bruce Willis did the film for free as a favor to Quentin Tarantino and preferred that his appearance be a surprise (and so that he wouldn't have to pay the Screen Actors Guild money for doing a free gig).
• What Could Have Been:
  • The film was originally named Five Rooms with Richard Linklater contributing a fifth segment, but he withdrew before production began.
  • The role of Ted was originally written with Steve Buscemi in mind, but he turned it down, feeling that it was too similar to his role in Barton Fink.
  • Lawrence Tierney was considered for the role of Sam.
  • The screenplay that was published featured extended segments or details different from their film counterparts. Examples include:
    • There is a scene in the script where we are first introduced to Betty (long before he calls her at her apartment, which is still in the film) when Ted starts his first night at the hotel, with her telling him that he'll be handling the shift alone and him voicing his opinion that he wasn't ready for it. This scene apparently was filmed, as there is a brief shot of Betty, played by Kathy Griffin, dressed in a manager's uniform sitting behind a desk in the film's trailer. However the scene was cut from the final release version.
    • As mentioned, the coven in "The Missing Ingredient" had been trying to undo the curse on Diana for 40 years. The reason for this was them having to try to concoct the spell by using various ingredients over the years in a trial and error process. Though the titular missing ingredient is provided (as it is in the final version of the film as well), it initially appears that the spell doesn't work yet again. The Coven leave the room, with Athena suggesting that the following year that they would try kosher salt instead of sea salt for the next time. However, it is shown that the spell does work and had a delayed reaction, with Diana being restored while the Coven is out the room and hotel.
    • "The Wrong Man" plays out mainly as it is does in the film, the ended is different. Teddy tries to leave the room as Angela is doing her listing of the various nicknames for a penis and upsetting Siegfried in the process, but the script version has Siegfried managing to grab him to keep him in the room. Angela manages to slip her bonds on her own and get ahold of the gun, telling Teddy to go. The guy looking for Room 404 is never seen (the book features a picture of Ted and Siegfried looking out a window in the room, and the final version of the scene in the film features Siegfried asking Ted not to go, which was scripted to have occurred when he grabs Ted).
    • "The Man From Hollywood" has an extended ending in the script after what is seen in the film. It follows Angela, after leaving the frantic gentleman who take the elevator down to get Norman to the hospital. On her way back to her room, she comes across Diana in a bed sheet and carrying a sword, but ultimately ignores her due being creeped out. She gets back to her room, entering, with Siegfried screaming, "Where the fuck have you been?!" from behind the door.

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