FILM 1750: THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI

FILM 1750: THREE BILLBOARDS OUTSIDE EBBING, MISSOURI

TRIVIA: Frances McDormand was hesitant to take the role when it was offered, but was eventually convinced by her husband, Joel Coen: "Because at the time he gave it to me I was 58... I was concerned that women from this socioeconomic strata did not wait until 38 to have their first child. So we went back and forth and we debated that quite for a while, and then finally my husband said, 'Just shut up and do it.'"

Martin McDonagh wrote the screenplay with Frances McDormand as the lead role in mind.

Sam Rockwell wore padding to make his character appear chubbier.

The town where the movie is filmed is actually a small mountain town in western North Carolina called Sylva.

McDonagh was inspired to write the movie after seeing billboards about an unsolved crime while traveling "somewhere down in the Georgia, Florida, Alabama corner".

First feature film directed by Martin McDonagh not to star Colin Farrell.

Upon winning the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Leading Role for her role in the film, Frances McDormand became the first actress to win two awards in the category; she had previously won her first award in the category in 1997 for Fargo (1996).

There are several allusions to Don't Look Now (1973). Not just the storylines of both films being about parents grieving the death of a daughter. The film Dixon's mother is watching on telly about "the dead girl" is Don't Look Now; we hear a few brief notes from Pino Donaggio's score. Red is the key colour in both films: the eponymous billboards are bright red and the agency guy is called Red. Both films have a dwarf, a useless priest and hopeless cops, a nasty fall and a massive knife, children left to play alone by water, a kids' toy bobbing in water.

FILM 1506: MR. RIGHT

After a going through a painful break up, a woman meets a man who appears to be perfect for her. However, as their relationship develops, she learns that he is a former hit-man. Their new, but genuine relationship is tested even further as they try to save each other after his dark past comes back to haunt him.

FILM 1497: POLTERGEIST

TRIVIA: In a Q&A, Saxon Sharbino admitted that she had never seen the original "Poltergeist" until filming was complete on this production.

Rosemarie Dewitt wanted to do the film, after she experienced the engaged and lively audience reaction at the premiere of The Conjuring (2013), which she attended because it featured her husband Ron Livingston.

Parapsychologist/Anomalist Christopher Chacon, one of the world's foremost authorities on "poltergeists", was utilized by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/20th Century Fox studios as their official expert on the phenomenon to internationally publicize and promote the release of the movie.

Amy talks to Eric about becoming a coach, Craig T. Nelson who played the original father in Poltergeist, played Coach Hayden Fox on the TV series Coach.

FILM 1123: THE WAY WAY BACK

TRIVIA: In an interview, writer/director Jim Rash said the script's main inspiration was the opening scene, inspired by a similar conversation he had with his own stepfather when he was 14.

The script was written in 2007 as "The Way Back", but the title was later changed to avoid confusion with the film The Way Back (2010). The title refers to the "way back seat," the 1970s colloquial expression for the third, often-hidden seat located in the cargo section of a station wagon.

The film was originally supposed to take place in 1984, but was moved into the present due to budgetary constraints. Owen's comment about how the water park "hasn't been upgraded since 1983" and Duncan's REO Speedwagon sing-along are both references to this fact.

Sam Rockwell would often improvise and joke around on the loudspeaker during scenes. One time, forgetting that there were children around, he made an inappropriate joke about herpes, which upset the owner of the park. Rockwell had to go and apologize so that they could continue filming.

In order to save money, the filmmakers decided to not get trailers for the actors, and instead decided to rent a house for the duration of filming (approx. 6 weeks), where the actors could go between takes. The house turned into a popular hangout spot for the cast and crew, and they would often go to the house even during weekends or days off.

In the original script, the character of Caitlyn was a young teenager who worked in the park and had no significant screen time. In later drafts, Jim Rash and Nat Faxon decided to make the character older and have her interact with Owen (Sam Rockwell)more, though it was mostly superficial interaction. When Maya Rudolph was cast, Rash and Faxon told Rudolph and Rockwell, that although there was not much in the script, the two actors would have to create a meaningful relationship between their two characters.

Film 1002: Seven Psychopaths

Trivia: Mickey Rourke was cast as Charlie, but had conflicts with a producer and was replaced by Woody Harrelson.

In the graveyard scene, the grave that the Jack of Diamonds killer is hiding behind is named "Rourke". Mickey Rourke was initially cast in the movie, but dropped out after disagreements with the director.