It was during filming this on location in New Zealand that Michael J. Fox made up his mind that he'd had enough of being away from his family making movies, and decided to head back to the small screen and star in a new sitcom (Spin City (1996)). This turned out to be his last leading role in a film.
Michael J. Fox repeatedly blew his lines by calling The Judge (John Astin) "Doc", the name of Christopher Lloyd's character in the Back to the Future (1985) trilogy.
The film was originally made to be PG-13, however the MPAA thought the film was too intense for the rating and gave it an R. No matter how much Peter Jackson would edit the movie to try to get the desired rating, the ratings board would keep it R (including citing some reasons like a door was shot by a gun too many times). Jackson, being angry that he tone himself down for nothing, changed a death scene in the movie to be more graphic in order to make the rating feel more deserving.
Michael J. Fox performed many of his own stunts in the film. Ironically, he broke his foot by a simple fall while filming in the forest at night. Sir Peter Jackson said Fox's injury was actually a blessing in disguise, because it allowed him to work on the script some more, and edit some of the film's scenes, while Fox recovered for a week.
No actor other than Michael J. Fox was considered for the role of Frank Bannister. Sir Peter Jackson and Dame Fran Walsh were having a meeting with Robert Zemeckis about the film, and his name came up. Jackson liked the idea, and sent the script to Fox.
Michael J. Fox: [white fence] In two scenes, Fox' character crashes through a white fence in his Volvo. In Back to the Future (1985) he crashes through a white fence in the Deloreon and in Doc Hollywood (1991) he crashes through a white fence in his Porsche.
Melanie Lynskey: Star of Sir Peter Jackson's Heavenly Creatures (1994) is the Deputy taking Lucy Lynskey's statement at the police station. Lucy's last name is a reference to the actress as well.
Peter Jackson: The bearded and pierced man who Frank bumps into a minute before the ghost of Ray knocks him down. Jackson had to wear the punk outfit (leather jacket, make-up, and a vast amount of piercings) the entire day of shooting, which was also the day that the studio had invited the media to the set for publicity.