Actor Allusion: It might be coincidental, but the last shot of "Shadows of the Night" when the strippers slide down the pole and stop just short of the ground looks an awful lot like a "Mission: Impossible" Cable Drop.
California Doubling: Inverted. This is a case of someplace else doubling as California, as Hollywood even, namely Miami. Even the famous Hollywood sign was rebuilt on a landfill.
Chris D'Arienzo is not terribly fond of the film version. In an interview with Buzzfeed, he said the film "feels like [it has] an underlying disdain — or at best, dismissive sense — of the era and the music," and that director Adam Shankman "doesn't really like our stage show. It was very clear that he thought the stage show was very problematic as an adaptation and simply could not work in a film format." He also claims that Shankman completely cut him out of the writing process upon being hired, and also admitted that he has never seen the film in its entirety, just parts.
Alec Baldwin has disowned this film, calling it a "horrible movie", and stated he only did the film just to work with its director Adam Shankman and one of its stars, Tom Cruise.
Missing Trailer Scene: Depending which trailer you watch, there is quite a prominent scene of a blonde fan running into Stacee Jaxx's backstage dressing room, ripping her top open and declaring how much she loves him as he autographs her cleavage whilst the Rolling Stone reporter who is trying to interview him watches in shocked silence. Needless to say this scene never happens in the film, but it appears on the extended cut of the film.
What Could Have Been: Chris D'Arienzo wrote the first draft of the film's screenplay and was even briefly attached to direct. He described his vision as a throwback to classic Universal Movie Musicals of the 50s, particularly Singin' in the Rain. He was replaced by Adam Shankman because the studio didn't trust D'Arienzo with a big budget.
, he said the film "feels like [it has] an underlying disdain — or at best, dismissive sense — of the era and the music," and that director Adam Shankman "doesn't really like our stage show. It was very clear that he thought the stage show was very problematic as an adaptation and simply could not work in a film format." He also claims that Shankman completely cut him out of the writing process upon being hired, and also admitted that he has never seen the film in its entirety, just parts.