Trivia / The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

• Actor Allusion:
  • In the sequel Douglas reads from Alfred, Lord Tennyson's poem "Ulysses" - which Judi Dench's character M also read from in Skyfall.
  • Bill Nighy and Penelope Wilton also played husband and wife in Shaun of the Dead.
  • Tom Wilkinson previously played a Mr Dashwood in Sense and Sensibility.
  • Madge at one point claims to be Princess Margaret. Ramona Marquez, who plays Madge's granddaughter, had previously played Princess Margaret as a child in The King's Speech.
• All-Star Cast: An ensemble of highly acclaimed British actors.
• Awesome, Dear Boy: Most of the veteran British actors signed on immediately just to be able to all work together on the one film.
• Creator Cameo: A variation. Jean is seen reading Tulip Fever, another novel by Deborah Moggach (who wrote the book this film is based on).
• Fake Nationality: Of a sense. Dev Patel was born and raised in Britain, and his parents are Kenyan. They do have Indian heritage though.
• Playing Against Type:
  • Maggie Smith tends to play upper class ladies. Here she plays a foul-mouthed cockney.
  • Celia Imrie finds herself playing a lot of mean old ladies. Her Madge is considerably nicer than her usual roles.
  • At the time of the first film Judi Dench was more commonly known for playing mean old ladies herself. But by the time of the sequel, she had already gotten a few more Cool Old Lady roles.
• Real-Life Relative: Tom Wilkinson (Graham Dashwood) and Diana Hardcastle (Carol) are married in real life.
• What Could Have Been:
  • There were rumours that Helen Mirren and Colin Firth would have roles in the sequel. Also Peter O'Toole and Julie Christie were originally going to play Norman and Madge but were eventually replaced with Ronald Pickup and Celie Imrie.
  • John Hurt and Eileen Atkins were considered for roles in the film also.