Trivia

Xavier's mother is Canadian, and is of three quarters French-Canadian and one quarter Irish descent (the surname "Dolan" is Irish). Xavier's father is Egyptian, from Cairo.

Used to write fan letters as a child to actors Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Susan Sarandon, Danny DeVito, Jennifer Aniston, singer Céline Dion, the cast from Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997), the cast from Roswell (1999), and the casts from Charmed (1998) and Smallville (2001). None of them wrote back to him.

During his childhood he was a fan of Titanic (1997), had posters of the movie in his bedroom and even wrote a letter to Leonardo DiCaprio when he was 8 years old. He also stated that "Titanic" had an incredible impact on his life and career path and that Kate Winslet inspired him to become an actor, a director, and a costume designer after seeing her in the film. He also had a cat named Jack Dawson like DiCaprio's character in the film.

Often casts Anne Dorval and Suzanne Clément in his films. And often works with cinematographer André Turpin.

In an interview for Vanity Fair in 2015, Dolan said he has a "mega crush" on Marion Cotillard and a special connection with her. Dolan directed Cotillard in the film It's Only the End of the World (2016). In a 2017 interview for Konbini's "Fast & Curious", Cotillard said that Dolan is like her little brother.

Is also a voice actor and has dubbed in French all of his roles in English-language films. He dubbed Ron Weasley in the Harry Potter saga; Jacob Black in the Twilight saga; Kit Harington in The Death & Life of John F. Donovan (2018) (directed by Dolan himself); and is also the Quebec French voice of Eddie Redmayne, Timothée Chalamet, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Josh Hutcherson and Dylan O'Brien in several films.

Son of Geneviève Dolan (Genevieve-Beatrice Dolan), a teacher, and Manuel Tadros, an actor and singer. His parents divorced when he was only two years old.

During the press conference for It's Only the End of the World (2016) at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival, Dolan stated that this is his best film. He also said in an interview for DP/30 in December 2016 that the scene he's the most proud of directing was the silent scene in this film between Marion Cotillard and Gaspard Ulliel on the couch, when their characters exchange looks and communicate only with their eyes and Cotillard's character understands that Ulliel's character is dying. That scene wasn't on the script and was improvised on set.

Was a member of the jury of the 2015 Cannes Film Festival presided by Ethan Coen and Joel Coen.

Has a total of 27 tattoos (as of 2017) and also has tattoos for each of the films he's directed.

On February 25, 2022, he paid tribute to his late friend Gaspard Ulliel at the César Awards ceremony in France by reading a letter he had written addressed to Ulliel's mother. In an interview for the French TV show "En Aparté" aired the day before the ceremony, Dolan said he dreamed of Ulliel very often and still couldn't accept his death.

Wrote his first screenplay, entitled "Les Ailes Roses" ("The Pink Wings"), when he was around 16 years old. There was a central figure in it of a lost, lonely teenager who was looking for himself and hiding his preferences from the world. At the end of the first act, an angel appeared to this young man and guided him towards the light. Dolan had written the role of the angel for Gaspard Ulliel, but it never got to him. This was the same screenplay that Dolan sent to Anne Dorval when they met for the first time. Later on, he wrote another role for Ulliel that didn't work out either, until he finally managed to work with him when Ulliel accepted the role of Louis in It's Only the End of the World (2016). Dolan told this story during his tribute to Ulliel at the César Awards in France on February 25, 2022.

His favorite films as a child were Titanic (1997), Batman Returns (1992), Matilda (1996), Jumanji (1995), Home Alone (1990), Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), Jack (1996), and The Secret Garden (1993).

Directed two music videos for Adele: Adele: Hello (2015) and Adele: Easy on Me (2021).

Dolan said in a March 2017 interview for Curzon's YouTube channel that the film he would like to be remembered for is It's Only the End of the World (2016), "for our incapacity to love and listen".

As of 2022, 6 of the films that he directed have premiered in competition at the Cannes Film Festival: I Killed My Mother (2009) (Golden Camera), Heartbeats (2010) (Un Certain Regard), Laurence Anyways (2012) (Un Certain Regard), Mommy (2014), It's Only the End of the World (2016), and Matthias & Maxime (2019). 3 of them competed for the Palme d'Or in the main competition: Mommy (2014), It's Only the End of the World (2016), and Matthias & Maxime (2019).