Gaspar Noé said that he did not direct the actors having sex or choreograph them. He said he just put them in their positions with respect to the camera and then say, "Okay, looks good, start the scene. Let's go." He added, "Once you put the people in the right positions it's okay. They know how to do it."
Karl Glusman got the role when he was out at a club and met a woman who asked him what his favorite movie was. When he answered Enter the Void (2009), she revealed that she was a friend of Gaspar Noè and told him that he's looking to cast an American actor in his next film. They got in touch over Skype, conversed, agreed to meet in France, went out to eat, drink and dance at several restaurants and clubs, and then Noè finally offered him the lead role.
In the press conference of the film at the Cannes Film Festival, Gaspar Noé stated that the script was seven pages long.
Lead actor Karl Glusman said that the very first shot that he shot for the film on his first day of filming was him masturbating to climax while the camera focused on his penis. The actor said: "The first day of shooting, [the director] said, 'It's time for your big close up!' He lowered the camera to my waist level and got the focus right. And he said, 'All right, take your pants off!' That was my ice breaker." Glusman added that starting in such a way made him nervous, but he nevertheless went ahead with it and enjoyed the overall filming experience.
Gaspar Noé: Electra's ex-boyfriend is Noe, referring to Gaspar Noé, who actually plays the character in the film. Murphy's ex-girlfriend is Lucile, and it may refer to Lucile Hadzihalilovic, who is Gaspar Noé's wife.