Ricky Gervais is featured on the poster, yet he appears in only three brief scenes before dying.
Claire Danes gets top billing despite not being the protagonist. The main character is then-unknown Charlie Cox's Tristan.
Breakaway Pop Hit: "Rule The World", created by Take That (Band) while they were in their white hot post-reunion phase, quickly became one of their biggest hits, divorced from any association with the film, and it remains a staple at their live performances.
Cast the Runner-Up: Ben Barnes was the favourite choice for Tristan. He was instead cast as Young Dunstan Thorn.
Cowboy BeBop at His Computer: Many reviews of the movie mention the Lightning Pirates as an example of ways in which the movie was different from the book, claiming that they do not appear in the book at all. This is untrue — it's just that what happens on their ship is glossed over in the book, and expanded on here. The film does invent some attributes: the airship crew in the book are not pirates, just fishermen of a sort who harvest lightning — though it is heavily implied to be very illegal, so they are still pirates of a sort, and their captain was not an (admitted) cross-dresser.
Darkhorse Casting: Matthew Vaughn intentionally cast the then-unknown Charlie Cox because he wanted an actor who could play a dork and easily transition into a suave and handsome gentleman.
Dawson Casting: 18-year-old Tristan is played by the 25-year-old Charlie Cox.
Deleted Scene: Several that change the tone of the story. A scene at the ending establishes Tristan and Yvaine as a Mayfly–December Romance, with Yvaine outliving Tristan by a long time, as they are in the book. In the actual film, Tristan is immortal because he "possesses the heart of a star", though after reigning for about 80 years he and Yvaine feel it's time for them to pass the Crown on. So they light the Babylon Candle and are transported to the heavens (and Tristan turns into a star!).
Fake Brit: Claire Danes and Michelle Pfeiffer do British accents, although their characters aren't exactly British. Captain Shakespeare speaks about "my beloved England" (of which he is a fanboy), and most everyone else in Stormhold speaks with a British accent, but Robert De Niro uses his own accent. He was so good that nobody cared.
In Memoriam: The film is dedicated to Mark Burns (New Bishop), who died before the film was released.
Separated-at-Birth Casting: Charlie Cox and Ben Barnes, who plays the younger version of Tristan's father, look so similar some viewers have assumed Cox played the younger version of Dunstan as well.
This film helped Mark Strong break into Hollywood, typecasting him as an Evil Brit — something he loved, having been stuck playing one-note lovers in period pieces beforehand.
The studio really wanted a more recognisable name in the role of Tristan — and they were pushing for Orlando Bloom. Once stars like Michelle Pfeiffer, Claire Danes, and Robert De Niro were attached, Matthew Vaughn was allowed to cast Charlie Cox.
features a brief clip of all three of the evil witch sisters having restored their youth
