Trivia for
The Truman Show (1998) More at IMDbPro »

• Dennis Hopper was originally cast as Christof, but walked off the set after his first day. Ed Harris replaced him and went on to win the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor and an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor.
  
  
• The band uniforms that Truman was wearing belonged to the Blue Star Regiment of Riverside's North High School.
  
  
• People on the set were forbidden from uttering phrases from Jim Carrey's past "silly" movies.
  
  
• When Truman goes to visit Marlon at work, the outside view of the shop is a brief homage to "The Prisoner" (1967). Look for the red and white awnings, and the cart (presumably Marlon's) with the single word "Goodies" printed in the Village font.
  
  
• Harry Shearer plays Mike Michaelson, the host of the TV call-in show who interviews Christof. In Edtv (1999), which is also about a man whose life is broadcast live 24 hours a day on television, he plays a similar character, the moderator of a TV show on which panelists discuss the phenomenon of EdTV.
  
  
• Every streetname in Seahaven refers to a movie actor, e.g. "Lancaster Square" or "Barrymore Road."
  
  
• The name of Truman's sailboat is the Santa Maria, the same name as one of Christopher Columbus's ships.
  
  
• The film's score includes Philip Glass' previous composition, "Anthem," from the film Powaqqatsi (1988).
  
  
• In an early scene on Truman and Meryl's kitchen table is a bottle of vitamin D - needed for those without exposure to the (real) sun.
  
  
• The motto on the double archway in the Seahaven town center is UNUS PRO OMNIBUS, OMNES PRO UNO: "One for all, all for one" in Latin, thus fitting the premise of the Truman Show. The motto is also the used in the Alexandre Dumas père's novel, The Three Musketeers.
  
  
• Director Peter Weir filmed in the 1.66:1 ratio to make it feel more like a television show.
  
  
• The exterior shots of 'Seahaven' were shot in the beach town of Seaside in Florida. Some interior shots were also filmed including the local shop.
  
  
• Cameo: [Philip Glass] Television composer on the synth piano.
  
  
• David Cronenberg turned down directing duties.
  
  
• When Andrew Niccol was going to direct, Gary Oldman was going to star.
  
  
• The couple at the picnic table, Darryl Davis and Robert Davis, are the founders of Seaside, the town where the movie is filmed. Robert Davis inherited the 80 acres from his grandfather, and he and his wife built the first home, and his concept of a small town and mixed-use building has become enormously popular and influential in the last 20 years.
  
  
• A lot more pseudo-documentary footage on the making of the fictional Truman Show was shot but not used in the theatrical version. Only some short segments have been included in the released film, in the pre-credits sequence. Segments of this outtake footage, featuring Meryl Burbank and Marlon being interviewed and talking about their roles on the show and their personal lives, have been included in some airline versions, presumably to pad the running times.
  
  
• Various trailers included scenes that were deleted from the theatrical and DVD releases: A cast read-through (a sign on the wall warns "ATTENTION: 1. REMOVE CELLPHONES. 2. NO SCRIPTS ON SET. 3. NO I.D. CARDS ON SET"); a visible tear in the "sky" after a stage light falls on the "street" in front of Truman's house; Truman singing the Planet Trumania anthem.
  
  
• The name of the "actor" who plays Marlon is listed at the beginning of the film as "Louis Coltrane", an amalgam of the names of the jazz musicians Louis Armstrong and John Coltrane. The character also plays trumpet in the film, another allusion to Armstrong.
  
  
• In the TV show opening sequence, as well as in the finale, the background music is an excerpt of Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters (1985) soundtrack, also composed by Philip Glass.
  
  
• Sam Raimi was considered to direct and had met with Jim Carrey.
  
  
• The State Examination Commission in Ireland listed the film as one of the options for the English comparative study for the Leaving Certificate (state exam taken when leaving school) of 2008 and has just been selected again for 2010.
  
  
• Just before the boat stops, we see the number "139" prominently displayed on its sail. The ensuing dialogue between Truman and Christof contains some paraphrased references to Psalm 139, as do many other aspects of the film.
  
  
• To help Ed Harris develop the character for Christof, director Peter Weir presented to him a 10 page biography. Part of this biography consisted of Christof doing a film on the homeless for which he won an award for.
  
  
• The Trumania bit, where Jim Carrey draws on the mirror with soap and acts strange, was completely improvised by Carrey. In another take he drew long curly hair and a dress.
  
  
• The location shoot for Seahaven Island (the film's town in the dome) was in a place called Seaside, Florida. When director Peter Weir arrived there with his pre-production team he said "Unpack our things, we've found our town." The week they arrived during the location scouting is the week they began pre-production.
  
  
• The events in the movie take place over a 4-5 day time span - Day 10909 to Day 10913 of the show - as shown by the ticker over the TV in the Truman Bar. Truman would have been 6-7 weeks from his 30th birthday. A "30th Anniversary" Truman Show commemorative plate can be seen hanging in the bar.
  
  
• Sylvia's apartment contained photos of cast members labeled with post it notes. One picture was of Marlon, with a note stating "Unable to Get Near Marlon - PRIME!". Another photo had a note stating "Jogger - 'No Way'". Another photo had a man with a note stating "will think about it". A printed banner above these photos contained the word "Agents".
  
  
• According to an August 28, 2008 New York Times article, psychologists in Britain and the U.S. have reported a number of people experiencing "Truman Syndrome" or "the Truman Show delusion" - the belief that they are the unwitting star of their own reality-TV show. According to the article, many of those afflicted have specifically mentioned the film while in therapy.
  
  
• Like the streets, all of the "cast" members are named after movies stars - Meryl, Marlon, Lauren, Kirk, Angela, etc.
  
  
• The ending mirrors the ending of the C.S. Lewis book "Voyage of the Dawn Treader", #4 of the Narnia series, with a ship sailing to the end of the "known" world and encountering a sky-blue wall, with a doorway leading to "another" world.
  
  
• The film is shot with an aspect ratio of 1.85:1. This is close to the 1.78:1 ratio of HDTV, but way below normal 2.25:1 for standard modern movies. So the aspect ratio is more cinematic than HDTV, but only just. This makes the movie look more like TV than film.
  
  

Related Links