Movie Trivia

Nikki Blonsky's film debut.

Cameo: [Ricki Lake (Tracy Turnblad in the first Hairspray (1988), director Adam Shankman, and songwriters Marc Shaiman and Scott Wittman] [William Morris talent agents in the finale - note Shaiman's very out of character and period beard.]

The original Broadway cast included Marissa Jaret Winokur (Tracy), Harvey Fierstein (Edna), Clarke Thorell (Corny Collins), Laura Bell Bundy (Amber), 'Matthew Morrison' (Link), Kerry Butler (Penny), Linda Hart (Velma), Dick Latessa (Wilbur), Corey Reynolds (Seaweed) and Mary Bond Davis (Motormouth Maybelle).

Jerry Stiller, who played Wilbur Turnblad in the original film version of Hairspray (1988), appears as Mr. Pinky in this version.

Billy Crystal and Jim Broadbent were both considered for the role of Wilbur Turnblad.

Elijah Kelley had to go through an hour of hair dressing every day.

It took John Travolta four hours to put on the fat suit and make-up required for him to become Edna Turnblad.

Amanda Bynes' pigtails took two hours in hair and make-up every morning.

To facilitate filming for the "Run and Tell That" dance number, the production cut up a 1957 GMC transit bus into 9 pieces.

Nikki Blonsky revealed on the May 16, 2007 show of "Oprah" that when she entered the studio on the first day, John Travolta had said to her, "Come to Momma".

The soundtrack for the new "Hairspray" features a rendition of all of the "original" Tracys (Ricki Lake from the first film, Marissa Jaret Winokur from the Broadway cast, and Nikki Blonsky from this film) singing "Mama, I'm A Big Girl Now". Harvey Fierstein appears near the end, but he isn't credited.

According to Film Journal International, the song "Big, Blonde and Beautiful (Reprise)" was added in as at the suggestion of Michelle Pfeiffer to replace a scripted scene, giving her the chance to sing.

Arvin Hodgepile and Franklin von Tussle, two characters from the 1988 film, do not appear in this version. The actors who played them died: Divine in 1988 and Sonny Bono in 1998.

John Travolta's fat-suit weighed more than 30 pounds.

There are 5 gel-filled silicone prosthetic appliances for parts of Edna's face

One day, while the cast was waiting between takes, John Travolta began singing "Summer Nights" from his first musical, Grease (1978). Co-stars Amanda Bynes and Zac Efron were so excited that they immediately began sending text messages to their friends about what was happening.

Penny Pingleton's dress in the "You Can't Stop the Beat" song was made from the curtains in her room.

Most of the cast jokingly called "You Can't Stop the Beat" "you can't stop to breathe" because of its pace and fast-moving lyrics. Queen Latifah said she had no trouble singing a lot of words very quickly because of her background as a rapper.

Meryl Streep and Madonna were considered for the role of Velma Von Tussle.

Costume designer Rita Ryack actually got vintage outfits for some of the characters to wear during a number of the scenes shot in the high school. Link Larkin's blue sweater was a sweater vest found at a vintage shop.

Season 3 "American Idol: The Search for a Superstar" (2002) runner up Diana DeGarmo auditioned to play Penny Pingleton but did not get the part because she was "too short". She is, however, in the Broadway show.

Amanda Bynes' character, Penny, is seen constantly eating lollipops. Her father, who is a dentist, became very worried for Amanda's dental health, as it was estimated she ate about 40 lollipops a day. Amanda told him that she wasn't really eating all of them, when in reality she ate them all.

This 2007 production of "Hairspray" is the first time a John Waters story made into a movie was not filmed in his hometown of Baltimore, Maryland; Toronto was used instead.

Nikki Blonsky celebrated her 18th birthday with her family and friends while on the set of this movie.

The creative team modified several songs from the Original Broadway production, removed others, and added some new songs. "Mama, I'm a Big Girl Now", a number performed in the stage musical by Tracy, Penny, and Amber opposite their respective mothers, was reluctantly cut from the script during pre-production - but was sung over the credits by all three "original" Tracys (Ricki Lake, Marissa Jaret Winokur, and Nikki Blonsky). While the crew liked the song, screenwriter Leslie Dixon felt the number did not adequately advance the plot, and would also be impossible to film without a three-way split screen, which neither she nor director Adam Shankman wanted to use. "It Takes Two", sung in the stage musical by Link to Tracy during her first day on "The Corny Collins Show", was moved to an earlier scene in the film; Link sings it just before Tracy learns that the TV station will be holding auditions for a new Council Member. However, only the song's coda remains in the final release. "Cooties", performed by Amber at the climactic "Miss Teenage Hairspray" pageant in the stage musical, is an instrumental during the pageant contestants' dance-off. "Mama" and "It Takes Two" are also instrumentals during scenes featuring broadcasts of "The Corny Collins Show". A reprise of "Big, Blond, and Beautiful", sung by Velma and Edna, was added to the film as part of a new subplot involving Velma Von Tussle's attempt to seduce Tracy's father Wilbur. "I Can Wait", a climactic ballad written for the film, was to have been performed by Tracy as she is hiding out in Penny's basement. The sequence was cut from the final release print. "The New Girl in Town" was a written for the stage musical, dropped during the workshopping stage, resurrected, and used in this film to underscore Tracy's rise-to-fame montage, and to show "The Corny Collins Show" on Negro Day. While Negro Day is a pivotal element of all three versions of "Hairspray", it is never seen in the 1988 film or the stage musical. "Ladies' Choice", performed by Link at a school dance, was added to replace "The Madison", a dance number carried over into the stage musical from the original 1988 film. "Come So Far (Got So Far to Go)" was written for the film for use during the closing credits.

Six songs were written for the film, but didn't make the final cut: "I Can Wait" (the only one filmed, available on Special Edition DVD), "Mrs. Von Tussle Says" (meant to replace Miss Baltimore Crabs), "Save Your Applause 'Till The End" (Velma follows Tracy around, complaining), "Turn Back The Hands of Time" (Original "Come So Far"), "It Ain't Over 'Till the Fat Lady Sings" (Tracy confronts Amber at the Miss Teenage Hairspray Pagant), and "It Doesn't Get Better Than This" (Wilbur comforts Tracy). All 6 songs are on the 2-Disc Special Edition Soundtrack.

Cameo: [John Waters] [The flasher in the opening 'Good Morning Baltimore' sequence.]

In a classroom scene, a teacher mentions that Everest is not Earth's highest geographical point. She asks what the actual highest point is, and the bell rings. The answer is Mt. Chimborazo in Ecuador, which is the furthest point from the Earth's center, but closer to local sea level than Everest. (The Earth bulges at the equator.) However, as the movie is set in 1962, and the analysis that led to Mt. Chimborazo being described that way was performed recently, it is extraordinarily unlikely that's what the teacher is referring to. Also, by the measurement that lists Mt. Chimborazo is highest, Everest is not 2nd, but 10th. Almost certainly, the reference is to K2, which is a point of contention.

After Penny and Seaweed fall in love, she sings, "And if they try to stop us, Seaweed/We'll call the N-double A-C-P." Until the Supreme Court's 1967 decision in Loving v. Virginia, interracial marriage was illegal in 17 states, including Maryland. In Baltimore, Maryland, in 1962, Seaweed and Penny's relationship was illegal.

When Prudy Pingleton reads the Bible out loud to herself, she reads Genesis 19:30-38, in which Lot's daughters get their father drunk and then conceive children with him.

The original Broadway production of "Hairspray" opened at the Neil Simon Theater on August 15, 2002, ran for 2,641 performances and won the 2003 Tony Awards for the Best Musical, Best Book and Best Score.

Adam Shankman offered the role of Link Larkin to Zac Efron after seeing him in 'High School Musical (2006)'.

Actor Dermot Mulroney plays cello on the soundtrack along with the Hollywood Studio Orchestra.

The "Nicest Kids in Town" are: Amber Von Tussle, Brad, Tammy, Fender, Brenda, Sketch, Shelley, IQ, Lou-Ann, Joey, Mickey, Vicki, Becky, Bix, Jessie, Darla, Paulie, Noreen, Doreen, Link Larkin and (when Brenda leaves) Tracey Turnblad.

This film reunites Michelle Pfeiffer and Christopher Walken; they had previously appeared together as villains in Batman Returns (1992).

With $27.5 million, this had the best opening ever for a movie musical until Mamma Mia! (2008).

This film brings together John Travolta who starred in Grease (1978), and Michelle Pfeiffer who starred in Grease 2 (1982).