Trivia / The Half of It

• Dawson Casting: Leah Lewis (Ellie), Daniel Diemer (Paul), Alexxis Lemire (Aster), and Wolfgang Novogratz (Trig) all play high school students, but in reality, are in their early twenties.
• Deleted Scene: A few scenes from the script were not included in the released film.
  • Parts of Aster and Ellie's conversation at the hot spring, including reminiscing about Catholic school and Aster taking off Ellie's glasses.
  • A scene where Ellie overhears Aster at confession.
• Fake Nationality: Ellie's father is played by Collin Chou, who is Taiwanese, not Chinese.
• Inspiration for the Work: According to director Alice Wu, the inspiration for the film came from a friendship she (a lesbian) had with a friend (a straight man) which began to grow rocky after the guy's girlfriend started to perceive Alice's friendship as a threat.
• What Could Have Been: The original plan for the story was for it to be about 20-somethings, and lacked a Playing Cyrano component, but it was changed to high school because its academic milestones and heightened emotions provided more clear conclusion points for the story.
• Writer's Block: Upon running into writer's block when trying to write the first draft for this movie, Alice Wu blackmailed herself by writing a check for the NRA (a organization she does not support) and threatening to mail it to them if her script wasn't finished within five weeks.
• Word of Gay: Among the other gay characters in the story, the briefly seen "Math Class Girl" who compliments Ellie after her talent show performance is confirmed as "a bit baby-dykish."