Line #3 Trivia/DeadPoetsSociety


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2	* ApprovalOfGod: Creator/PeterWeir gave his approval to the 1994 stage adaptation, and attended the opening night.
3	* BeamMeUpScotty: A minor example; most parodies of the ending scene have every character shout "O Captain! My Captain!" when they stand up on their desk. In the film, only Todd and Knox say the phrase, while everyone else stands without saying anything.
4	* CaliforniaDoubling: Delaware for Vermont.
5	* CastTheExpert: Simon Mein, the vicar seen in the film, was the actual vicar of the school they filmed in.
6	* CompletelyDifferentTitle:
7	** The French title is ''Le cercle des poètes disparus'' (''The Gone/Disappeared Poets Society'').
8	** The Italian title for the movie is ''L'Attimo Fuggente'' (''The Fleeting Moment'') likely referring to the movie's message of Carpe Diem).
9	* CreatorBreakdown: Creator/RobinWilliams was going through a divorce during filming, and was unusually stoic between takes.
10	* CreatorsFavorite: He'd go on to win the UsefulNotes/AcademyAward for ''Film/GoodWillHunting'' and probably be best remembered for ''Film/MrsDoubtfire'', ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'' or ''Film/GoodMorningVietnam'', but Mr. Keating was in fact Creator/RobinWilliams' favorite role.
11	* TheDanza: Sort of. Although Mr. Keating's first name is John, during production he was referred to as 'Robin' to better bring out Robin Williams' spontaneity.
12	* DawsonCasting: Largely averted, as most of the Dead Poets' actors were between the ages of 18-20, except for Gale Hansen (Charlie Dalton), who was 29. When they realized he equivocated about his age, he was forced to go through the casting process all over again.
13	* DeletedRole: Creator/LaraFlynnBoyle was cast in a bit part as Chet's sister Ginny, but all of her scenes ended up on the cutting room floor, save for a few scenes in which she is glimpsed as a non-speaking extra. She's still listed in the credits.
14	* DeletedScene: An oft-shared image of Keating standing on two of his students' desks is not actually featured in the film itself.
15	** As referred to above in DeletedRole, Chet's sister Ginny had her scenes cut, including one where Chris is talking to her while waiting for Chet to come down.
16	** Keating entertains the class by doing a BlackComedy bit about cooking dogs for a meal.
17	** A scene of some of Keating's students attempting to eat lunch with their left hand, until a teacher comes by to ask what they're doing. Knox tries to explain they're trying to break old habits, but the teacher doesn't buy it.
18	* DyeingForYourArt: All the cast had to get short, '50s-style haircuts. According to the "Look Back" special on the DVD, Creator/EthanHawke [[TraumaticHaircut found this upsetting]].
19	* EnforcedMethodActing:
20	** The young actors all roomed together to help build up a believable bond.
21	** The film was also shot in chronological order to help naturally portray the development of the boys' relationship with Mr. Keating. [[spoiler: After Neil's suicide, Creator/RobertSeanLeonard was kept off set and didn't communicate with the others]] to create a natural feeling of loss amongst friends.
22	** The boys were also told not to use modern slang, even between takes, to better immerse themselves in the time period.
23	* HostilityOnTheSet: Subverted. Creator/EthanHawke was convinced Creator/RobinWilliams ''hated'' him because their styles were so different. Hawke approached his role ''very'' seriously because he wanted to do a good job, and was determined not to break when Williams turned the full force of his RapidFireComedy on him. Unbeknownst to him, this actually impressed Robin, who recommended him to his first agent after filming ended.
24	* IronyAsSheIsCast: Creator/EthanHawke struggled terribly in school, and actually dropped out of college once he got this role.
25	* OneTakeWonder: The scene where Todd cries in the snow [[spoiler: after Neil's suicide]] was done in one take, because the snow was starting to fade and they wouldn't get another chance.
26	* PlayingAgainstType: This film features Creator/RobinWilliams in one of [[TomHanksSyndrome his earlier "serious" roles]].
27	* ProductionNickname: Creator/EthanHawke called the film ''One Flew Over [[Creator/RobinWilliams Robin]]'s Nest''.
28	* StarMakingRole: Creator/RobertSeanLeonard and Creator/EthanHawke both got their big breaks with this film.
29	* ThrowItIn: Todd's crying in the snow was going to be an interior scene. However, it started to snow outside, and they quickly changed it to take advantage. As noted above, it was done in one take.
30	* WagTheDirector: In the very last scene, Cameron was supposed to stand on his desk as well, but Dylan Kussman vetoed the idea because he thought that it would not be in character. He was surprised when Creator/PeterWeir agreed.
31	* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
32	** An earlier draft of the script included Ginny Danbury, Chet's sister and a friend of Chris's. Along with giving Chris more screentime, Ginny also had the role of Hermia in the play, and the actress who played her, Lara Flynn Boyle, still appears in those scenes, even though the scenes with her as Ginny were cut. Even though those scenes weren't technically necessary for the rest of the movie, it would've been nice for Chris to have a friend outside of her love triangle with Chet and Knox. There's even a hint at the character's existence when Chris mentions her to Knox at the party as if wanting to set them up.
33	** Creator/LiamNeeson had originally landed the leading role, and the film was to be directed by Jeff Kanew, but lost it to Creator/RobinWilliams when director Peter Weir came on board. Creator/MelGibson was briefly attached, but his asking price was too high. Creator/DustinHoffman was offered the role of John Keating, and the film would have been his directorial debut before he dropped out. Creator/MickeyRourke passed when Peter Weir refused to make script changes. Creator/AlecBaldwin, Creator/TomHanks, Creator/BillMurray and Creator/ChristopherReeve were also considered for the role of Mr. Keating.
34	** Originally, Cameron was supposed to stand on his desk in the final scene like the rest of the Society. However, Dylan Kussman, the actor who portrayed him, felt that this would be {{out of character\|Moment}} and said so to Peter Weir. Weir agreed, so they changed it to Cameron remaining seated.
35	** One early idea was to have Keating be dying of leukemia during the course of the film. This was changed so the film would focus on the boys instead.
36	** Creator/RiverPhoenix wanted to play Neil Perry.
37	** Creator/SamRockwell auditioned for Charlie Dalton.
38	** Another early idea was for the students' passion to be ''dancing'' rather than poetry. In this case, the film's title would have been 'Sultans of Swing'.
39	** According to Creator/MattDamon, he and Creator/BenAffleck auditioned for parts in this film.
40	* WordOfSaintPaul: Gale Hansen (who plays Charlie) admitted that in hindsight there was [[AmbiguouslyGay something between]] [[FanPreferredCouple Neil and Todd]], but none of the other characters knew if they acted on their feelings.
41	--> Question on Twitter: ''"Was there ever more than friendship between Neil and Todd?"''
42	--> Hansen: ''"Looking back, yes. Though Charlie’s has no confirmation if it was ever consummated. Some things Neil took with him. [[TearJerker And Todd never spoke about it."]]''
43	* WriteWhatYouKnow: Screenwriter Tom Schulman based the film on his experiences at the Montgomery Bell Academy in Nashville, Tennessee, particularly with his inspirational teacher, Samuel Pickering. After the film came out, some of his old school friends phoned him up to ask if any of the characters had been based on them.

Context Trivia / DeadPoetsSociety