History Trivia / PansLabyrinth

** An earlier draft of the script had the situation more ambiguous as to whether the magic was real or not (as Ofelia would encounter a dragon that speaks with Vidal's voice). In the finished film, the magic is definitely real, [[WordOfGod insofar that Del Toro even said it himself]]

* MultipleLanguagesSameVoiceActor: Sergi Lopez (Captain Vidal) dubs himself in the French dub.
* PlayingAgainstType: Much of the cast. Sergi Lopez typically played slimy, arrogant creeps who were somewhat LaughablyEvil. Alex Angulo (Doctor Ferreiro) had been considered a lightweight comedic actor. Maribel Verdu (Mercedes) had played mostly love interests, and her most famous role (at least in the English-speaking world) had been Luisa Cortés in ''Film/YTuMamaTambien''.

* MultipleLanguagesSameVoiceActor: Sergi Lopez (Captain Vidal) dubs himself in the French dub.
* PlayingAgainstType: Much of the cast. Sergi Lopez typically played slimy, arrogant creeps who were somewhat LaughablyEvil. Alex Angulo (Doctor Ferreiro) had been considered a lightweight comedic actor. Maribel Verdu (Mercedes) had played mostly love interests, and her most famous role (at least in the English-speaking world) had been Luisa Cortés in ''Film/YTuMamaTambien''.

* FlipFlopOfGod: Del Toro has stated that while he personally believes the magic was real and hinted at it in the film, he frequently tells audiences that the film neither proves or disproves it and they should come to their own conclusions.

* GodNeverSaidThat: While del Toro did say he personally believes the magic is real, he does not consider this to be canon and ultimately left it ambiguous:
--->It’s a Rorschach test. Some people come to me incredibly delighted because they’re sure the fantasy is real, and others come to me very angry and say, “You are a nihilist; you say fantasy is not real,” and still others say, “I love the way you proved it is all in her mind.” And I go, “I proved neither.” I have my own theory that it’s real, but people react very differently.

** Some fans have interpreted the magic elements to be just Ofelia's imagination, and the ending to be [[spoiler: a DyingDream]]. Del Toro has claimed that he considers the magic real, but has left it open to interpretation.

* WordOfSaintPaul: In contrast to Del Toro, Ivana Baquero believes Ofelia is imagining the Faun and the other supernatural elements.

* ThoseTwoActors: Ariadna Gil and Maribel Verdu both appeared in ''Film/BelleEpoque'', playing sisters.

** ''Film/TheDevilsBackbone'', which is set in the same continuity, was originally set in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution, but Del Toro moved it to the Spanish Civil War after he left Mexico following his father's abduction in 1998. Had this not happened it is conceivable that he would have set both films, in whatever state, in Mexico. The infamous bottle scene was based on an incident he was told had happened in Mexico.

** ''Film/TheDevilsBackbone'', which is set in the same continuity, was originally set in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution, but Del Toro moved it to the Spanish Civil War after he left Mexico following his father's kidnapping in 1998. Had this not happened it is conceivable that he would have set both films, in whatever state, in Mexico. The infamous bottle scene was based on an incident he was told had happened in Mexico.

** ''Film/TheDevilsBackbone'', which is set in the same continuity, was originally set in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution, but Del Toro moved it to the Spanish Civil War after he left Mexico following his father's kidnapping in 1998. Had this not happened it is conceivable that he would have set both films, in whatever state, in Mexico. The infamous bottle scene was based in an incident he was told had happened in Mexico.

** Nevertheless, Del Toro still shopped ''Pan's Labyrinth'' unsuccessfully to producers in Mexico and the United States before going to Spain. Talks with US producers in particular failed in part because they wanted to move the setting to [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazi Germany]], which he rejected.

** ''Film/TheDevilsBackbone'', which is set in the same continuity, was originally set in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution, but Del Toro moved it to the Spanish Civil War after he left Mexico following his father's kidnapping in 1998. Had this not happened it is conceivable that he would have set both films, in whatever state, in Mexico.

** ''Film/TheDevilsBackbone'', which is set in the same continuity, was originally set in UsefulNotes/TheMexicanRevolution, but Del Toro moved it to the Spanish Civil War after he left Mexico following his father's kidnapping in 1998. Had this not happened it is conceivable that he would have set both films, in whatever state, in Mexico. Del Toro still shopped ''Pan's Labyrinth'' unsuccessfully to producers in Mexico and the United States before going to Spain. Talks US producers in particular asked to move the setting to [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazi Germany]], which he rejected.

* SelfAdaptation: Del Toro wrote the novelization and is writing the stage musical.

* ImageSource: This film provides the page image for:
** EyesDoNotBelongThere
** SchmuckBanquet

** Doug Jones, who plays the Faun, ''[[FauxFluency does not speak Spanish.]]'' He learned all of his lines ''and'' Ofelia's in phonetic Spanish so he would know when to speak. Not only that, but he couldn't ''hear'' her either because the servos in the costume were so loud. So Jones had to perform all his scenes completely deaf and lip-read Ofelia's lines in a language he didn't speak. His voice was dubbed over in the final product by veteran Spaniard voice actor Pablo Adán, who praised Jones' efforts for allowing him to flawlessly synch his readings with the Faun's mouth movements.

* AbilityOverAppearance: Ofelia was written to be a younger girl, aged seven to nine. However del Toro was so impressed with Ivana Baquero (who was twelve), he rewrote Ofelia's age to accommodate her.

* InspirationForTheWork: Del Toro drew inspiration from Creator/LewisCarroll's ''Alice'' books, Creator/JorgeLuisBorges' ''Ficciones'', Creator/ArthurMachen's ''Literature/TheGreatGodPan'' and ''Literature/TheWhitePeople'', Creator/LordDunsany's ''The Blessing of Pan'', Creator/AlgernonBlackwood's ''Pan's Garden'' and Creator/FranciscoGoya's works.

** Doug Jones, who plays the Faun, ''[[FauxFluency does not speak Spanish.]]'' He learned all of his lines ''and'' Ofelia's in phonetic Spanish so he would know when to speak. Not only that, but he couldn't ''hear'' her either because the servos in the costume were so loud. So Jones had to perform all his scenes completely deaf and lip-read Ofelia's lines in a language he didn't speak. His voice was dubbed over in the final product, but the dub actor praised Jones' efforts for allowing him to flawlessly synch his readings with the Faun's mouth movements.

* PlayingAgainstType: Much of the cast. Sergi Lopez (Captain Vidal) typically played slimy, arrogant creeps who were somewhat LaughablyEvil. Alex Angulo (Doctor Ferreiro) had been considered a lightweight comedic actor. Maribel Verdu (Mercedes) had played mostly love interests, and her most famous role (at least in the English-speaking world) had been Luisa Cortés in ''Film/YTuMamaTambien''.