Sherilyn Fenn was originally considered for the role of the femme fatale Lola, eventually played by Sean Young. Fenn opted for the role of Armand Assante's lovesick secretary Laura and suggested director Carl Reiner cast Young as Lola.
A scene was filmed with Dudley Moore appearing in drag as Max Shady's mother, testifying at Lana's trial. Although the scene was cut from the movie, it is included on the DVD release.
After a disastrous marketing campaign led to a shortened run at the US box office, this film went straight to video in the United Kingdom.
In 2018, when shown on the cable network MoviePlex, the songs "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" by Iron Butterfly and "Brown Eyed Girl" by Van Morrison were replaced by generic instrumental music.
The film title is a combination of Fatal Attraction (1987) and Basic Instinct (1992), both of which starred Michael Douglas.