Jane Fonda was originally cast as Julia. However, when the producers had trouble casting the role of Lillian Hellman, they decided to recast Fonda in the lead.
Meryl Streep was actually Fred Zinnemann's preferred choice for the role of Julia, but she was an unknown actress who had only worked on the stage, so it was given to Vanessa Redgrave as the bigger name. Meryl was then given the role of Anne Marie.
Creator Backlash: Meryl Streep was so horrified when she saw herself in the finished film that she thought "I've made a terrible mistake", and even considered never doing another film.
Meta Casting: It's very appropriate that both Jane Fonda and Vanessa Redgrave, two famous for their outspoken political beliefs, be cast as characters who are also political activists.
Sydney Pollack was originally assigned to direct but, according to the screenwriter, had trouble relating to a story about the relationship between two women which was not about lesbianism.
Julie Christie and Faye Dunaway turned down the role of Julia. Ronee Blakley, fresh off her Oscar nomination for Nashville, was approached as well.
Jack Nicholson was offered the role of Dashiell Hammett, and was actually keen to take it. Fred Zinnemann later retracted the offer, however, when he felt put off by the amount of time it was taking Nicholson to read the script - just under a week.
