Glenn Close still has the knife she used in the movie hanging in her kitchen, stating: "It's beautiful, made of wood and paper. It's a work of art! And it's nice for our guests to see it. It lets them know they can't stay forever."
More than 20 directors passed on directing the movie.
Glenn Close said that in her opinion, she had no trouble doing her nude scenes because she believed that they were not exploitative at all, and that they all served the story.
To get the desired reaction shot from Ellen during the scene where she witnesses her parents having an intense argument, Michael Douglas was behind the camera bullying Ellen Latzen and threatening to take away the stuffed unicorn she was holding, saying, "look at that stupid unicorn, I'm gonna throw it in the garbage," which is why she begins crying and hugging it tighter. After director Adrian Lyne yelled "cut," Douglas immediately apologized to her, said he was only kidding, and hugged her. In an interview years later, Douglas stated, "I felt pretty guilty. But you've got to do what you've got to do."
Michael Douglas was also working on the film Wall Street (1987) at the same time as this film. To avoid a schedule conflict, Douglas would alternate between each film during the week.