Trivia / How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days

• Actor-Inspired Element:
  • When Matthew McConaughey was cast, they felt they had to explain why a Texan-accented man was an advertising executive in Manhattan, so they came up with a backstory of Ben's father having been in the Navy and them being stationed at different places. They then cast Celia Weston to play his mother because of her southern accent.
  • Ben was also given a motorcycle because he drives one in real life too.
• Friendship on the Set: Kathryn Hahn says that she, Kate Hudson and Annie Parisse became "fast friends" during filming.
• Harpo Does Something Funny: The 'couples therapy' scene was basically Kathryn Hahn and Kate Hudson doing a lot of improvising.
• Irony as She Is Cast: Kate Hudson is able to sing, as seen in Nine, so she had a hard time trying to deliberately sing "You're So Vain" badly.
• The Red Stapler: Many women were inspired to go into journalism because of Andie Anderson.
• Throw It In!:
  • Kate Hudson improvised plastering Matthew McConaughey with kisses during the scene where she introduces the new dog. This is why McConaughey looks genuinely surprised.
  • Much of the scene where Andie crashes Ben's "boy's night" was improvised. Hudson had the idea to toss the platter of veggies at the guys seated at the poker table. Donald Petrie, the director, knew she was going to do this but the actors in the scene were truly surprised.
  • When Andie and Ben go to see Sleepless in Seattle, according to the commentary, Kate ad-libbed two quotes: "I've always wanted a man like Tom Hanks" and "You can't watch Meg Ryan for two hours and not be thinking about another girl."
• Typecasting: Kathryn Hahn was frequently called on to play "quirky" at this point in her career, such as in Crossing Jordan.
• Wag the Director: Kate Hudson pushed for Matthew McConaughey to play Ben, as she liked his screen test most, despite people worrying he might be "too Texan".
• What Could Have Been:
  • Gwyneth Paltrow was originally going to star, but dropped out in order to star in View from the Top.
  • The ending had to be rewritten during production, although it was always going to end with Andie and Ben getting together. They feared they might not be able to film on the bridge, and there was talk of relocating the scene to an airport.
• Word of Saint Paul: According to actress Kate Hudson, about the fate of characters Andie and Ben, they would have gotten married with kids. They'd probably be miserable right now too. She does however hope they're happy and probably "still playing Bullshit with his parents".