For the film:
- Actor Allusion: There's mention of vampire slayers. James Marsters had starred as Spike in Buffy the Vampire Slayer, while Hilary Swank had starred in the film version.
- Creator Backlash: Gerard Butler apologised to Irish viewers for his appalling attempt at an Irish accent.
- Fake Irish:
- Scottish Gerard Butler plays an Irishman.
- American Jeffrey Dean Morgan plays William Gerry's childhood friend.
- Playing Against Type: Hilary Swank is normally The Determinator or an Iron Woobie. Richard LaGravenese (who had directed her as such a character in Freedom Writers) wanted people to see a lighter side to her.
- Star-Derailing Role: Hilary Swank was unlucky enough to star in this and The Reaping, the failures of which saw her star power fading. The critically savaged bomb Amelia didn't help matters.
- Throw It In!: Holly was supposed to lip-sync to the song. But after a few takes, they had Hilary Swank sing it badly instead.
For the book:
- Sequel Gap: The book has a sequel, but it came out no sooner than 15 years (and 14 other, unrelated, books published by the author) later.
