History Trivia / MonstersInc

!The Movie

* ActingForTwo:
** Dan Gerson as both Needleman and Smitty.
** French actor and voice actor Henri Guybet voiced both the Abominable Snowman and Rex from ''Franchise/ToyStory'' from the outtakes (he's Rex's usual French voice).
* AllStarCast: And unlike most Pixar films, one where the two leads were given a generous amount of mention in the advertising.
* AwesomeDearBoy: Billy Crystal accepted the role of Mike Wazowski because he felt bad for turning down the role of Buzz Lightyear in ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory1''. He has since stated on multiple occasions that playing Mike is the single greatest joy of his career.
* TheCastShowoff: Creator/JohnGoodman once again shows off his singing chops on "If I Didn't Have You", having previously performed "People Like Us" in ''Film/TrueStories''.
* CelebrityVoiceActor: The Japanese dub features comedians Hidehiko Ishizuka and Yuji Tanaka as the respective voices of Sulley and Mike, while Creator/MadsMikkelsen voices Randall in the Danish dub.
* ChildrenVoicingChildren: Mary Gibbs was a toddler like her character Boo. While not necessarily a case of NeverWorkWithChildrenOrAnimals, the crew apparently found it easier to just follow her around with a boom mike than to try and get her to sit still in the booth.
* {{Corpsing}}: In the read-along adaptation read by Creator/DomDeLuise, the reader can hear [=DeLuise=] laughing while reading about Mike landing in the wastebasket.
* CrossDressingVoices: Bob Peterson as Roz.
* TheDanza: As signed on one of Boo's pictures, her real name is Mary after her voice actress Mary Gibbs.
* DescendedCreator: Pete Docter voiced the CDA agent giving them the all-clear to decontaminate Harryhausen's.
* DistancedFromCurrentEvents: The original punchline to the gag of Harryhausen's getting "decontaminated" had the CDA [[KillItWithFire blowing it up with explosives]]. A mere 60 days before the film's release, 9/11 happened, and it was hastily changed to the restaurant getting put under a force-field. The original scene can be found on the Blu-Ray features.
* DuellingMovies: With ''WesternAnimation/Shrek1'', also a monster themed CGI buddy comedy. The two films contested the first-ever Oscar for best animated movie (Shrek won).
* EnforcedMethodActing: Because Mary Gibbs was so young when she recorded her parts as Boo, Pete Docter would often talk to Mary Gibbs through sock puppets to get the necessary emotions from her. Other times, she'd be given money or candy to get a happy reaction and have it taken away to get anger and sadness. Sometimes her mother would come in and tickle her or even pick her up and toss her in the air to get her to laugh into the microphone.
* KidsMealToy:
** In the US, UsefulNotes/McDonalds released figures of ten of the film's characters; Mike, Sulley, Randall, Boo, George Sanderson, Mr. Waternoose, Roz, Celia, the Abominable Snowman, and a CDA agent. Mike, Sulley, Randall, Boo, and George all came with doors that could open and connect to each other.
** In Europe, [=McDonalds=] released figures of Mike, Sulley, Randall, Boo (with a removable monster costume), Mr. Waternoose, Roz, Celia, and a CDA agent.
** In Asia, [=McDonald's=] released figures of Mike, Sulley, Randall, Boo (in her monster costume), Mr. Waternoose, and Roz.
** In Australia, [=McDonald's=] released the figures of Sulley and Mr. Waternoose from the European set, and Mike and Boo from the Asian set.
* MemeAcknowledgement: The meme of Boo crying was acknowledged by the scene's animator, Tasha Sounart, on Twitter. She finds it bizarre and hilarious.
* MissingTrailerScene: There are two teaser trailers with completely original footage.
* NonSingingVoice: In the German version of "If I Didn't Have You", Sulley's singing voice is provided by Thomas Amper, who also voiced George Sanderson.
* TheOtherDarrin: In most non-movie media, Creator/JohnGoodman and Creator/BillyCrystal don't reprise their roles as Sulley and Mike. Sulley has been voiced by multiple actors, while Creator/CarlosAlazraqui always replaces Crystal as Mike.
* PopCultureUrbanLegends:
** There's been a hoax going around associated with the movie. It involves a screenshot of a scene showing that Boo drew a drawing of her mother and "Uncle Roger" having sex. The picture is photoshopped. Despite this, people still claim that it was on the first edition before later being censored.
** Many articles and sources claimed that Boo was singing the titular song from ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast'' while in the bathroom stall. While the melody is somewhat similar, Mary Gibbs confirmed in a [[https://reddit.com/r/IAmA/comments/2rzln8/iama_mary_gibbs_voice_of_boo_from_monsters_inc_ama/cnksbl5/ Reddit AMA]] that the lyrics are mainly nonsense.[[note]]When she was first asked to sing a song for the crew, she originally sang "Wheels on the Bus", but this was unused due to it being copyrighted.[[/note]]
* PreviewPiggybacking: Those lines around the block of the theaters when this movie was first released? Many were obsessive ''Franchise/StarWars'' fans trying to see the teaser for ''Film/AttackOfTheClones'', many of whom left after seeing it.
* RealLifeRelative:
** Boo's actress, Mary Gibbs, is the daughter of storyboard artist Rob Gibbs.
** Ditto with Boo's Latin American VA Alicia Vélez, whose father Creator/HumbertoVelez voiced Roz.
* ThoseTwoActors: This was the first film to have Creator/JohnGoodman and Creator/SteveBuscemi to not be made by Creator/TheCoenBrothers.
** From the obscure cartoon ''Pigs Next Door'', John Goodman (Sulley) was main character Phil, while John Ratzenberger (the Yeti) and Jennifer Tilly (Celia)) were his neighbors the Stumps.
* ThrowItIn: All of Boo's lines. Obviously, then-toddler Mary Gibbs was not going to sit still in a recording booth and read any lines like a professional actress, so the team just followed her around the studio with a boom mic and recorded her playing. You can actually tell that she must have been in the ''Franchise/WinnieThePooh'' department, because one of her lines sounds like "I'm Tigger!".
* VoicesInOneRoom:
** Creator/JohnGoodman and Creator/BillyCrystal recorded their lines together, which also resulted in a lot of improvising.
** Creator/FrankOz and Creator/SteveBuscemi also recorded their lines together for the bathroom scene where they discuss Randall's plot.
* WhatCouldHaveBeen: [[WhatCouldHaveBeen/MonstersInc Has its own page]]
* WorkingTitle: "Hidden City" was its code name, and "Monsters" was the name for an early script treatment.

* RoleReprise: During the HilariousOuttakes, Wallace Shawn reprises Rex.

* RoleReprise: During the HilariousOuttakes, Wallace Shawn reprises Rex.

* DuellingMovies: With ''WesternAnimation/Shrek1'', also a monster themed CGI buddy comedy.

* DuellingMovies: With ''WesternAnimation/{{Shrek}}'', also a monster themed CGI buddy comedy.

* JumpedAtTheCall: Billy Crystal accepted the role of Mike because he felt bad for turning down the role of Buzz Lightyear in ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory1''.

* ActingForTwo: French actor and voice actor Henri Guybet voiced both the Abominable Snowman and Rex from ''Franchise/ToyStory'' from the outtakes (he's Rex's usual French voice).

* TalkingToHimself: Dan Gerson as both Needleman and Smitty.

* ImageSource:
** ChildrenVoicingChildren

* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
** Creator/BillMurray read for the role of Sulley before Creator/JohnGoodman was cast. However, Creator/PeteDocter couldn't get back in touch with Murray after his screen-test, which he took as a "no".
** Creator/RobinWilliams, Creator/EddieMurphy, Creator/JackBlack, and Creator/DrewCarey were considered for the part of Mike before the casting of Creator/BillyCrystal.
** Creator/JimCarrey, Creator/ChrisBarrie, Creator/VincentDOnofrio, and Creator/JeffGoldblum were considered to voice Randall before Creator/SteveBuscemi was cast.
** Creator/PatrickStewart had discussions for the role of Waternoose before the casting of Creator/JamesCoburn.
** Pete Docter's earliest concept involved an adult man with monsters as figments of his imagination, Each monster represented a fear he had, and conquering those fears caused the monsters to eventually disappear.
** Early drafts had Mike as Randall's scaring assistant and Sulley as a non-Scarer factory worker.
** Several other drafts didn't feature Mike at all, and were focused strictly on Sulley and Boo's relationship.
** The DVD and Blu-Ray releases have a [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lZKiMAJLq4c story treatment]] narrated by Pete Docter. Among its many differences:
*** A Sulley-prototype protagonist named Johnson teams up with a human child named Mary and becoming Scarers together. The climax would have involved a FriendOrIdolDecision, with Johnson wondering if keeping Mary's fixed door a secret was worth it to become Top Scarer.
*** Johnson was going to have a land lady, probably a prototype for Roz.
*** Johnson would have ended up as TheExile in this treatment, with Mary dropping her door on him to save him from the cops and Ned. Because of his exile, Sulley and Mary would [[GrowOldWithMe grow old together]], well into their senior years, later repurposed into ''Up'' during the "Married Life" sequence.
*** Waternoose was to have a design slightly resembling [[Film/CreatureFromTheBlackLagoon Gillman]], all while still having the suit and multiple eyes that carried all the way to his final, crab-like design. In concept art of this same design, Waternoose was also shown to be a CigarChomper.
*** The original design for Randall (named "Ned" in this treatment) had him as an orange cyclopean, fishlike monster who would have acted as a mentor to Sulley, before becoming a GreenEyedMonster from his recent string of successes alongside Mary, later leading the monster hunt for the two of them once he finds out about his secret.
** Boo was originally going to be slightly older, around 6, but was made younger to make her more dependent on Sulley.
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q9waEVdMcYk The film originally had a framing device that served as a backstory for the Monster World.]]
** [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tz_JLiILIXw As shown by this clip]], Mike [[ArmlessBiped wasn't originally going to have arms]], and Sulley originally had tentacles instead of feet.
** Sulley was supposed to have glasses, but that idea was scrapped due to concerns about them limiting his expressiveness.
** Early concept art of Randall variably depicted him with a bowtie and/or a waistcoat.
** According to the DVD's bonus features, Sulley (still with tentacles) was going to be Randall's assistant instead of Mike (who by this point has arms). At the same time, Randall was still going to be called "Ned," a leftover of the original "Monster-Child scare team" treatment.
** Sulley's original concept art made him look [[https://jpbannisterrandd.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/sulleyconceptart.png a lot weirder]]. [[https://jpbannisterrandd.files.wordpress.com/2013/11/sulleyconceptart2.png Later art]] was closer to his current design.
** In early development, the city of Monstropolis was designed with a more gothic and sinister aesthetic, similar to Halloween Town from ''WesternAnimation/TheNightmareBeforeChristmas''. When later drafts established that being scary was just a job for the monsters rather than their natural behaviour, the city was redesigned with a stronger resemblance to an average human town.
** Mike was going to propose to Celia at Harryhausen's before Sully interrupted. It was cut because it would make his relationship even more strained, and that Boo was enough of a source of conflict. Funny enough, in the [=DVD=] commentary, the directors forgot that reason and had to call Dan Gerson to explain why.
** Sulley's introduction after Waternoose mentions him in the opening scene was originally going to be him roaring at the camera and then seguing directly into the workout scene.
** The original theatrical release was supposed to feature a THX trailer starring WesternAnimation/{{Shrek}} and Donkey, but it was pulled a week and a half before because Disney threatened to blacklist THX over the trailer, which wouldn't be seen for a couple of years after that.
** A rejected concept was that Celia actually had the abilities of Medusa (hence having snakes for hair), having [[TakenForGranite turned her ex-boyfriends to stone]] and putting extra pressure on Mike.
** Ted's original roar was that of a "famous movie monster" according to Pete Doctor on the audio commentary, most likely ''Franchise/{{Godzilla}}''. Unable to get the rights, they swapped it out for the sound of a chicken. An EarlyDraftTieIn of this idea can be found in one of the TV spots prior to the film's release, where Ted lets out a low roar when stepping up to home plate.
** Due to Pixar not renewing its seven-film distribution deal with Disney in 2004 that would also give the latter full rights to its properties and sequel production, a sequel called ''Monsters, Inc. 2: Lost in Scaradise'' was intended to be produced by a newly established studio called Circle 7 Animation, along with ''Script/ToyStory3'' and a sequel to ''WesternAnimation/FindingNemo''. [[https://lostmediawiki.com/Disney_Circle_7_Animation_(partially_lost_production_material_of_cancelled_direct-to-video_sequels;_2004-2006) The plot]] would have involved Sulley and Mike visiting Boo's room to celebrate her birthday, only to find an old woman living where her room used to be. The two would then decide to explore the human world in search of her, only to get lost. With the deal falling through in January 2006, and then-CEO Michael Eisner, who Pixar seriously disdained, getting ousted and being succeeded by Bob Iger, Disney would purchase Pixar and give creative control back to them, with the sequel being scrapped in favor of ''WesternAnimation/MonstersUniversity''. Circle 7 would be shut down two months later, with most of the animators going to either the feature animation department or [=DisneyToon=] Studios.

** Another involved a Sulley-prototype protagonist named Johnson teaming up with a human child named Mary and becoming Scarers together. The climax would have involved a FriendOrIdolDecision, with Johnson wondering if keeping Mary's fixed door a secret was worth it to become Top Scarer.
*** In this same treatment Sulley was also going to have a land lady, probably a prototype for Roz.
*** Similarly, Sulley would have ended up as TheExile in this treatment, with Mary dropping her door on him to save him from the cops and Ned. Because of his exile, Sulley and Mary would [[GrowOldWithMe grow old together]], well into their senior years, later repurposed into ''Up'' during the "Married Life" sequence.

*** Randall's original design had him as an orange cyclopean, fishlike monster who would have acted as a mentor to Sulley, before becoming a GreenEyedMonster from his recent string of successes alongside Mary, later leading the monster hunt for the two of them once he finds out about his secret.

** According to the DVD's bonus features, Sulley (still with tentacles) was going to be Randall's assistant instead of Mike (who by this point has arms). At the same time, Randall was going to be called "Ned," a leftover of the original "Monster-Child scare team" treatment.

** Mike was going to propose to Celia at Harryhausen's before Sully interrupted. It was cut because it would make his relationship even more strained. Funny enough, in the [=DVD=] commentary, the directors forgot that reason and had to call Dan Gerson to exlain why.

** The scene at Harryhausen's originally had Mike trying to propose to Celia, which would have driven a wedge between him and Sulley. However, it was quickly decided that Boo was enough of a source of conflict.

* DoingItForTheArt: The extensive work on the hair simulation for Sulley is staggering, and the efforts clearly paid off.

* ThrowItIn: All of Boo's lines. Obviously, then-toddler Mary Gibbs was not going to sit still in a recording booth and read her lines like a professional actress, so the team just followed her around the studio with a boom mic and recorded her playing. You can actually tell that she must have been in the ''Franchise/WinnieThePooh'' department, because one of her lines sounds like "I'm Tigger!".