- Shia LaBeouf and Michelle Monaghan did 80% of their stunts.
- Aria is voiced by Julianne Moore, who chose to go uncredited.
- When Jerry and Rachel are in Circuit City, just as Jerry opens the door to the home theatre room, to the left of his head you can see a small poster for Disturbia (2007) (also starring Shia LaBeouf and directed by D.J. Caruso).
- According to dates on security cameras seen on-screen, the film takes place in late January 2009.
- The film takes place in January because this is when the State of the Union address, key to the plot of the film, is traditionally held every year.
- Shia LaBeouf stated that during filming an F.B.I. Agent told him and the cast that 1 in every 5 phone calls someone makes is recorded. To prove this, the agent had him listen to a phone call he made 2 years prior to filming.
- Was released on DVD and Blu-ray only 3 months after its theatrical release date. The film opened on September 26 2008 and was released on video on December 26 2008.
- According to Shia LaBeouf, in order to become emotional for Ethan's funeral scene, he listened to Judy Garland's "Over The Rainbow" in which he stated that he "breaks down" when hearing that song.
- Aria appears to be based upon a "black" program through the National Security Agency which is believed to be a large computer program that monitors and records phone calls by listening in for key words related to terrorism and the like.
- Throughout the movie, various sounds from the video game Halo (2001) (VG) are used.
- This is second time Shia LaBeouf and William Sadler have played father and son. The first was in The Battle of Shaker Heights (2003).
- Was the first film released in September since Sweet Home Alabama (2002) to gross over 100 million dollars.
- The listed movies on the Circuit City TV screens by Aria when she talks about "the preferences, purchases and quantifiable data points" that define Shia Labeouf's character personality, are The Big Lebowski (1998) Cidade de Deus (2002), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), Rushmore (1998), Full Metal Jacket (1987), and Donnie Darko (2001).
>>> WARNING: Here Be Spoilers <<<
Trivia items below here contain information that may give away important plot points. You may not want to read any further if you've not already seen this title.
- SPOILER: The last name of the major who helps Agent Perez disable the Aria computer is Bowman, the same last name as that of Dave Bowman, the crew member who in the end disabled the computer "Hal" in the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968). In both cases, they are disabling the computer by pulling out key components.
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