Line #2 Trivia/TheBlackDahlia


1	* CaliforniaDoubling: Although some of the exterior shooting ''does'' avert this trope, most of the movie was actually filmed in Bulgaria.
2	* CastTheRunnerUp:
3	** Creator/RoseMcGowan auditioned for Elizabeth Short, but was eventually cast in a minor role as Short's roommate.
4	** Creator/MiaKirshner was originally hired to read lines with potential actors in the auditions. However, Creator/BrianDePalma and Josh Friedman were so impressed with her that she was cast in the title role.
5	* CreatorKiller: The film's failure sent Creator/BrianDePalma on a years-long sabbatical from Hollywood. After releasing ''Redacted'' (which was much smaller in scale) the next year, all of his subsequent films as of 2020 have been international co-productions made outside of the U.S..
6	* DevelopmentHell: The rights were first bought in 1986 and it took twenty years to get the book made into a film.
7	* DisownedAdaptation: A variation. Creator/JamesEllroy saw the original three hour cut and loved it. He has refused to talk about the severely edited version that got released.
8	* DyeingForYourArt: Creator/JoshHartnett trained for seven months to be in shape for the boxing scenes.
9	* ExtremelyLengthyCreation: Josh Friedman claims he worked on the script from 1997 to 2005.
10	* FakeAmerican: Mia Kirshner, who plays the title role, is Canadian.
11	* IronyAsSheIsCast: Creator/MiaKirshner plays a terrible actress who can't get a part. Her performance was almost universally praised by critics, even those who otherwise disliked the film.
12	* PlayingAgainstType: Creator/HilarySwank - usually as wholesome determinators - as a FemmeFatale.
13	* RomanceOnTheSet: Creator/JoshHartnett and Creator/ScarlettJohansson dated for approximately two years after meeting on the set of this film.
14	* SavedFromDevelopmentHell:
15	** James B. Harris optioned the film rights to the novel shortly after it was published in 1987. He planned to direct the adaptation and completed a script before abandoning the project to make another film. The project then languished in development hell for several years. The success of ''Film/LAConfidential'' led to Universal acquring the rights to ''The Black Dahlia''.
16	** Creator/DavidLynch purchased the rights to the novel in 1996 with plans to make a film adaptation which never came to fruition. Elements of the novel and the real-life case that inspired it would be incorporated into ''Film/LostHighway'' and ''Film/MulhollandDrive''
17	* UncreditedRole:
18	** Creator/CateBlanchett has an uncredited and unmentioned cameo. In the scene where Lee Blanchard is in a lesbian bar asking questions and he sees Madeline for the first time, Blanchett is one of the dancers while the song is being sung and there are at least two shots of her when Blanchard is asking some women at a table if they had seen Elizabeth Short.
19	** The singer in the lesbian bar is played by an uncredited k.d. lang, who also produced "Love for Sale", a cover version of a 1930 Music/ColePorter song, which she performs during the scene.
20	* WhatCouldHaveBeen:
21	** The film was originally in pre-production with Creator/DavidFincher attached as director. Fincher originally envisioned "a five-hour, $80-million miniseries with movie stars" shot entirely in black and white. Fincher eventually left the project as he felt he wasn't going to be able to make the film exactly as he had envisioned.
22	** While Fincher was attached as director, Creator/MarkWahlberg was attached to play Lee Blanchard. Wahlberg was forced to drop out due to scheduling conflicts with ''Film/TheItalianJob2003''.
23	** While Fincher was attached as director, he apparently wanted Creator/JuliannaMargulies for Madeleine and Creator/JenniferConnelly for Elizabeth.
24	** Creator/EvaGreen was offered the role of Madeleine but didn't want to be typecast as a FemmeFatale, and turned it down. Creator/KateBeckinsale was also considered.
25	** Creator/MaggieGyllenhaal was also offered the role of Elizabeth but turned it down, as she disliked how the murder was used as a plot device and felt that the story disrespected Short's memory. This would have made ''Film/TheDarkKnight'' hilarious.
26	** Creator/GabrielByrne, Creator/BillyCrudup, Creator/JohnnyDepp and Creator/MichaelDouglas were considered for Lee Blanchard.
27	** Creator/StephenDorff, Creator/ChrisODonnell and Creator/PaulWalker were considered for Bucky Bleichert.
28	** Music/GwenStefani was considered for the part of Kay Lake.
29	** Creator/FairuzaBalk was considered for Elizabeth and Madeline.
30	** Creator/TiffaniThiessen was considered for Elizabeth Short.
31	** A real life friend of Elizabeth Short, Marjorie Graham, was going to be featured in one scene where she tells Dwight that Elizabeth and Lorna were seen with a lesbian. She was written out and this was given to Sherryl Saddon (as the scene would have taken place directly after hers).
32	** Creator/AmyIrving originally signed on for a small role, but De Palma cut her role before filming eventually began.
33	** Music/JamesHorner was originally on board the project to score the film's music but in February 2006, it was reported that Music/MarkIsham had replaced him.
34	** Josh Friedman claimed that his original script featured cameos from Creator/RussellCrowe and Creator/GuyPearce reprising their roles from ''Film/LAConfidential''.

Context Trivia / TheBlackDahlia