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According to an account in book "Tales from the Script" (2010) by Peter Hanson and Paul Robert Herman, David S. Ward re-wrote approximately 85% of the dialogue, but received no on-screen credit, a predicament that spawned enough controversy to merit a front page article in the Los Angeles Times.
At the end, when Zorro confronts Captain Love, he pulls out his sword, and the sun glints off the blade running the full length. This was not CGI, and was suggested by Antonio Banderas. He had to tilt the sword to catch the sun without breaking eye contact with Matt Letscher. It only took three takes.
Originally, Sir Anthony Hopkins refused the part of Don Diego de la Vega because of his back pain. A laser operation made it possible for him to accept the part.
Legendary sword trainer Bob Anderson, who trained Errol Flynn, remarked that Antonio Banderas was the most gifted swordsman with whom he had worked since Flynn. Banderas had also trained with the Spanish Olympic team for four months.
Not only was Joaquin Murrieta a historical figure, he is widely believed to be the inspiration for the original literary character Zorro.