Trivia / Piranha

• Approval of God: It's a parody of Jaws and like the main page says, the movie was almost going to get sued before Steven Spielberg said he loved it.
• Dueling Movies: With Barracuda, another movie about killer fish.
• Follow the Leader: Was quickly followed by Killer Fish and Barracuda. The latter even ripped off the government conspiracy plot!
• The Other Marty: Eric Braeden was originally cast as Paul Grogan, but he pulled out to pursue another project. He had already shot some underwater swimming footage which is used in the film.
• Troubled Production: The film had some documented production problems, including last-minute cast changes, underwater cameras that kept breaking down, union woes, and unusable second unit footage. It still became one of New World Pictures' biggest hits.
• Unfinished Episode: Piranha 3, to be written and directed by Ovidio Assonitis (under pseudonym Oliver Hellman) and released in 1991. Nothing came of it except a single full-page ad in Variety.◊
• What Could Have Been:
  • Rick Baker was originally tapped to provide the make-up effects. He recommended 17-year-old Rob Bottin instead.
  • Peter Fonda was originally offered the role of Paul Grogan, but turned it down.
  • Barbara Steele's role was originally written for a man.

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