Trivia / Maniac Cop 2

• Billing Displacement: Although he gets top billing and is featured prominantly on some of the posters, Bruce Campbell is killed 17 minutes into the movie and only has roughly 3 minutes of screen time before being killed.
• Creator Backlash: Bruce Campbell has jokingly stated at conventions that he does not like being reminded of or asked questions about this film, as he was going through a messy divorce during filming.
• Creator's Favorite Episode: William Lustig considers this to be his best film and superior to the first.
  It was the film [where] I felt as though myself and my crew were really firing on all cylinders. And I think we made a terrific B-movie.
• In Memoriam: The film was dedicated to the memory of Joe Spinell.
• Method Acting: Leo Rossi visited a strip club in character as Turkell, and was kicked out by bouncers after terrifying a stripper by making sustained direct eye contact with her.
• Sequel First: In Italy, the film was released as Maniac Cop, and the first film was released later under the title Poliziotto sadico - Maniac Cop 2 (Sadistic Policeman).
• Troubled Production: Claudia Christian got along with nobody and single-handedly drove the shoot into the ground. She feuded with Robert Davi, refused to take direction from William Lustig, and threw a tantrum when she had someone take measurements of her trailer and found it was ten feet smaller than Davi's. She also failed to inform the crew that she was three months pregnant, even though she was taking a physically demanding role in an action slasher flick. This resulted in her suffering a miscarriage in the middle of the shoot, costing the movie its insurance and grinding production to a halt. Unable to recast her, the producers reluctantly allowed her back on the proviso that they wouldn't sue her, even though her antics cost the production $200,000. When she returned to the set, Davi reportedly told her, "Maybe now you won't be such a hormonally-imbalanced bitch."
• What Could Have Been:
  • Laurene Landon was meant to be paralyzed and left in a coma, rather than being killed off. The former concept was reused in Maniac Cop 3: Badge of Silence.
  • Joe Spinell, of Maniac! (1980) fame, was supposed to play Turkell, effectively reprising his role as the eponymous maniac.
  • Richard Crenna was originally considered to play Edward Doyle.

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