Phoebe Cates was actually pregnant with her second child during filming. Her costumes were specifically designed to hide her pregnancy.
Kevin Kline (Frixos) and Phoebe Cates (Princess Caraboo) are married in real life. They met during an audition for The Big Chill (1983) and have been married since 1989.
Phoebe Cates retired from acting after filming this movie to focus on raising her family. She would do one more performance seven years later when she appeared in The Anniversary Party (2001).
In real life, Mrs. Worrall was actually an American.
Princess Caraboo (Phoebe Cates) who is half Filipina uses the Filipino word "ngipin" while talking about teeth. Ngipin means teeth in Tagalog.