History Trivia / TheFrenchConnection

** Creator/PeterBoyle was offered the role of Popeye, but declined after having starred in ''Film/{{Joe}}'', a film about a [[PoliticallyIncorrectHero bigoted factory worker]] who eventually murders a bunch of hippies, which had audiences [[MisaimedFandom cheering at him]] instead of being revolted, much to Boyle's disgust.

* UsefulNotes/AFIS100YearsSeries:
** AFIS100Years100Movies: #70
** AFIS100Years100Thrills: #8
** AFIS100Years100HeroesAndVillains:
*** #44 Hero, Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle
** AFIS100Years100Movies10THAnniversaryEdition: #93

* AFIS100YearsSeries:

* SameLanguageDub: Portions of Fernando Rey's French-language dialogue was redubbed due to Rey's thick Spanish accent.

* FakeNationality: Marseilles drug kingpin Alain Charnier is played by Spanish actor Fernando Rey. The Italian-American Russo's actor Roy Scheider is of Irish, German, and Jewish descent.
* MethodActing: Roy Scheider and Creator/GeneHackman patrolled with Eddie Egan and Sonny Grosso for a month to get the feel of the characters. Hackman became disgusted at the sights he saw during this patrol. In one incident he had to help restrain a suspect in the squad car and later worried that he would be sued for impersonating a policeman.

** Jackie Gleason was also considered for the role, but finally rejected by 20th Century Fox due to his box office failure in the studio's 1962 film ''Film/{{Gigot}}''.

* RealLife/MeanCharacterNiceActor: Creator/GeneHackman had a hard time saying Doyle's racist language without cringing.

** Creator/JamesCaan, Creator/CharlesBronson and Creator/AdamWest were considered for Popeye.

** Creator/WilliamFriedkin had wanted an actor he had seen in the French film ''Film/BelleDeJour'' to play Charnier because the actor was just like the rough-and-tumble gutter type the RealLife Charnier was. He couldn't remember the actor's name, but was told it was Fernando Rey. Rey was cast and flew to New York to meet Friedkin, only for Friedkin to quickly discover that Rey 1) wasn't in ''Belle de Jour'', 2) was a suave, dapper gentleman who was nothing like Jean Jehan (the real Charnier), 3) was actually Spanish, and 4) didn't speak very good French. Friedkin discovered that the actor he'd actually wanted was a guy named Francisco Rabal, who like Rey was a Spanish actor who'd done some French films but didn't speak very good French...and, unlike Rey, spoke no English. So Friedkin reluctantly kept Rey, but later admitted that the suave/crude contrast between Rey and Creator/GeneHackman suited the film very well.

** Creator/SteveMcQueen was offered the role of Popeye, but declined because he didn't want to play another cop after ''Film/{{Bullitt}}''.

* MeanCharacterNiceActor: Creator/GeneHackman had a hard time saying Doyle's racist language without cringing.

** AFIS100Years100Movies10ThAnniversaryEdition: #93

* DuelingMovies: With ''DirtyHarry'', another 1971 CowboyCop movie.

** Peter Boyle was offered the role of Popeye, but declined after having starred in ''Film/{{Joe}}'', a film about a [[PoliticallyIncorrectHero bigoted factory worker]] who eventually murders a bunch of hippies, which had audiences [[MisaimedFandom cheering at him]] instead of being revolted, much to Boyle's disgust.
** SteveMcQueen was offered the role of Popeye, but declined because he didn't want to play another cop after ''Film/{{Bullitt}}''.
** Jackie Gleason was also considered for the role, but finally rejected by 20th Century Fox due to his box office failure in the studio's 1962 film ''Gigot''.
** William Friedkin had wanted an actor he had seen in the French film ''Film/BelleDeJour'' to play Charnier because the actor was just like the rough-and-tumble gutter type the RealLife Charnier was. He couldn't remember the actor's name, but was told it was Fernando Rey. Rey was cast and flew to New York to meet Friedkin, only for Friedkin to quickly discover that Rey 1) wasn't in ''Belle de Jour'', 2) was a suave, dapper gentleman who was nothing like Jean Jehan (the real Charnier), 3) was actually Spanish, and 4) didn't speak very good French. Friedkin discovered that the actor he'd actually wanted was a guy named Francisco Rabal, who like Rey was a Spanish actor who'd done some French films but didn't speak very good French...and, unlike Rey, spoke no English. So Friedkin reluctantly kept Rey, but later admitted that the suave/crude contrast between Rey and Gene Hackman suited the film very well.

* The "94% Pure" scene (where the heroin is tested), real heroin was used.

** PeterBoyle was offered the role of Popeye, but declined after having starred in ''Film/{{Joe}}'', a film about a [[PoliticallyIncorrectHero bigoted factory worker]] who eventually murders a bunch of hippies, which had audiences [[MisaimedFandom cheering at him]] instead of being revolted, much to Boyle's disgust.

* Early in the film, Popeye hands Cloudy a straw hat to toss on the back deck of the car, saying it's time to "go to work". A straw hat, at least in the late '60s/early '70s, was a sign that an undercover detective was on duty.

** Jackie Gleason was also considered for the role, but was rejected by 20th Century Fox due to his box office failure in ''Gigot''.

** Jackie Gleason was offered the role of Popeye, but was rejected by 20th Century Fox after his box officer failure ''Gigot''.

** William Friedkin had wanted an actor he had seen in the French film ''LaBelleDuJour'' to play Charnier because the actor was just like the rough-and-tumble gutter type the RealLife Charnier was. He couldn't remember the actor's name, but was told it was Fernando Rey. Rey was cast and flew to New York to meet Friedkin, only for Friedkin to quickly discover that Rey 1) wasn't in ''La Belle du Jour'', 2) was a suave, dapper gentleman who was nothing like the real Charnier, 3) was actually Spanish, and 4) didn't speak very good French. Friedkin discovered that the actor he'd actually wanted was a guy named Francisco Rabal, who like Rey was a Spanish actor who'd done some French films but didn't speak very good French...and unlike Rey spoke no English. So Friedkin reluctantly kept Rey, but later admitted that the suave/crude contrast between Rey and Gene Hackman suited the film very well.

** William Friedkin had wanted an actor he had seen in the French film ''LaBelleDuJour'' to play Charnier because the actor was just like the rough-and-tumble gutter type the RealLife Charnier was. He couldn't remember the actor's name, but was told it was Fernando Rey. Rey was cast and flew to New York to meet Friedkin, only for Friedkin to quickly discover that Rey 1) wasn't in ''La Belle du Jour'', 2) was a suave, dapper gentleman who was nothing like the real Charnier, 3) was actually Spanish, and 4) didn't speak very good French. Friedkin discovered that the actor he'd actually wanted was a guy named Francisco Rabal, who like Rey was a Spanish actor who'd done some French films but didn't speak very good French...and unlike Rey spoke no English. So Friedkin reluctantly kept Rey, but later admitted that the suave/crude contrast between Rey and Gene Hackman suited the film very well.