Matthew Lillard's character, Stevo, was originally to have bleached-blond hair, but when he got the bleach job, the peroxide burned Lillard's scalp, leaving a hideous mess. Dyeing his hair blue was a way to hide it.
When the boy flips off the camera in the mall and says "Anarchy in the UK!" the voice is actually the director James Merendino dubbing it over because he felt that the boy didn't say it right.
The scene in Stevo's parents' living room where they try to convince him to go to Harvard was shot in director James Merendino's father's house.
The apocalyptic imagery that appears behind Sandy when she tells Stevo something "beautiful" is footage from Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991).
Christopher McDonald is only 15 years older than Matthew Lillard, who plays his son.
James Merendino: The director appears quickly as one of the punks in the "Explanation of Fight" slide show, and as the character "Freaky Deaky" at the party at Chris' house.