History Trivia / ThePerksOfBeingAWallflower

* UnderageCasting: A strange example with Miller (Patrick). They were the right age to play their character. But they're younger than Lerman (Charlie), while their character is a few years older and acts as a sort of big sibling mentor figure to the wide-eyed Charlie.

* UnderageCasting: Miller (Patrick) is actually younger than Lerman (Charlie), but their character is a few years older and acts as a sort of big sibling mentor figure to the wide-eyed Charlie.

* DawsonCasting: Averted with Ezra Miller as Patrick, who was 18, but played straight with 21-year-old Emma Watson as a high school senior. Logan Lerman was eighteen, two years older than his character. Also Lerman is nine months older than Miller, who plays a character nearly four years his senior.

* StuntCasting: Having Creator/EmmaWatson portray Sam.

* FakeAmerican: Brit Creator/EmmaWatson as Sam, and New Zealander Creator/MelanieLynskey as Aunt Helen.

* QueerCharacterQueerActor: Ezra Miller plays Patrick, who's gay. In real life, they identify as genderqueer and pansexual.

* IWantYouToMeetAnOldFriendOfMine: A minor case. Creator/MaeWhitman and Creator/JohnnySimmons both appeared in Film/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld. Though they didn't share any scenes.

* FakeAmerican: Brit Creator/EmmaWatson as Sam, and New Zealander Melanie Lynskey as Aunt Helen.

* FakeAmerican: Creator/EmmaWatson as Sam.

* {{Jossed}}: Stephen Chbosky denies that Candace's abortion subplot was cut to avoid an R-rating. According to him the scene occurred right after Charlie's break-up with Mary Elizabeth - and it was cut so as not to affect the pace of Charlie being ostracised by his friends. The film was rated R anyway and only changed to PG-13 after an appeal.

* RealLifeWritesTheHairstyle: Creator/EmmaWatson having short hair is because she got a pixie cut after wrapping ''Film/HarryPotterAndTheDeathlyHallows''.

** Creator/JohnHughes originally had the film rights and planned to make the movie more as a dark comedy. Creator/ShiaLeBeouf would have played Charlie, Creator/KirstenDunst as Sam and Creator/PatrickFugit as Patrick. However his sudden death meant that the project was shelved, and eventually made as an independent film with the original author directing.

* IWantYouToMeetAnOldFriendOfMine: A minor case. Creator/MaeWhitman and Creator/JohnnySimmons both appeared in LiveActionFilm/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld. Though they didn't share any scenes.

* RetroactiveRecognition: Ponytail Derek (Charlie's sister's boyfriend) is Cousin Greg from ''Series/{{Succession}}''.

* QueerCharacterQueerActor: Ezra Miller plays a gay character. In real life, he identifies as non-binary and queer.

** Alice being a lesbian was cut from the original book. Likewise with Sam and Patrick being chain smokers (because in the 90s EveryoneSmokes) and Charlie's smoking phase was dropped.

* QueerCharacterQueerActor: Ezra Miller is gay like his character Patrick.

* ActorInspiredElement: Emma Watson and Ezra Miller both worked with the choreographer to come up with some ideas for the homecoming dance.

* FakeAmerican: Emma Watson as Sam.

** Paul Rudd plays a straighter role than usual, as the CoolTeacher.

** John Hughes originally had the film rights and planned to make the movie more as a dark comedy. Shia Le Beouf would have played Charlie, Kirsten Dunst as Sam and Patrick Fugit as Patrick. However his sudden death meant that the project was shelved, and eventually made as an independent film with the original author directing.

* CastingGag: Creator/MaeWhitman plays a character named [[Film/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld Mary]] [[Creator/MaryElizabethWinstead Elizabeth]]. Especially noticeable as Brad is played by Young Neil's actor from the same film.

* ActorAllusion: Creator/TomSavini, who plays the woodshop teacher, is not only a Vietnam veteran, he's also a native of Pittsburgh.

* PlayingAgainstType: Melanie Lynskey is generally known for playing quirky characters. In ''The Perks of Being a Wallflower'' she played the main character's aunt, [[spoiler:a child molester who abused the protagonist and later died in a car crash]].
* PlayingWithCharacterType: Emma Watson playing a clever, plucky GirlNextDoor.

** A subplot involving Candace telling Charlie she is pregnant and going to get an abortion was filmed, but cut from the film to avoid an R rating.
** Alice being a lesbian was cut from the original book.

* CastingGag: MaeWhitman plays a character named [[Film/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld Mary]] [[Creator/MaryElizabethWinstead Elizabeth]]. Especially noticeable as Brad is played by Young Neil's actor from the same film.

* FreezeFrameBonus: Patrick's report card actually says "Patrick Nothing". Also if you look at Charlie's birthday cake, there are sixteen candles on it - which indicates that he's sixteen years old. And you can read the name 'Samantha Dutton' on Sam's SAT results, telling us what her full name is.

* CastingGag: MaeWhitman plays a character named [[Film/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld Mary]] [[Creator/MaryElizabethWinstead Elizabeth]].
** Especially noticeable as Brad is played by Young Neil's actor from the same film.

** Alice being a lesbian was cut from the original book.

* HeyItsThatGuy:
** [[Film/PercyJacksonAndTheOlympians Percy Jackson]] is Charlie. And [[Film/HarryPotter Hermione]] is [[FakeAmerican Sam]]. [[PrivatePractice Addison]] is his mother and [[TheVampireDiaries Elena Gilbert]] is his sister who is dating [[Series/TenThingsIHateAboutYou Cameron James]] and the teacher is Creator/PaulRudd.
** Charlie's dead aunt killed [[Series/TwoAndAHalfMen Charlie Harper]]
*** Don't forget his friend [[Film/WeNeedToTalkAboutKevin Kevin Khatchadourian]]
*** Or his father, a [[Series/ThePractice morally conflicted defense attorney]].
** [[Film/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld Roxy]] is [[CastingGag Mary Elizabeth]].
*** [[Series/ArrestedDevelopment Her?]]
*** When she was a little girl, [[Series/{{Friends}} Ross accidentally broke her leg.]]
** [[Film/ScottPilgrimVsTheWorld Young Neil]] is Brad.
** Creator/JoanCusack appears briefly at the end as the doctor who takes care of Charlie after his [[spoiler:bungled suicide attempt]].
* HeyItsThatVoice: [[WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender Katara]] is Mary Elizabeth.
** And so is [[Franchise/DisneyFairies Tinker Bell]].