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FILM · 2002 · UK

Death to Smoochy

17 archived facts 3 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026

17 Interesting Facts About Death to Smoochy

Interesting Facts (13)

  1. #001

    A painting of a rhinoceros hangs on the wall of Sheldon's house. The painting belonged to Edward Norton and hung on his own wall in real life.

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  2. #002

    The newspaper Nora gives Sheldon is a joke in itself. The middle and right paragraphs visible in the photograph read: "The stories people come up with are very entertaining. Do you create different articles every day? I'm sure it would be much easier when it's a subject I'm not currently writing about. The serial killer pictured above isn't actually a real serial killer. He's probably a friend of someone who let us use his photo."

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  3. #003

    The mixture of spirulina and almond butter that Sheldon puts on his soy sausage sandwich was actually prepared by Edward Norton in a hotel room.

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  4. #004

    In a 2023 interview with The A.V. Club, Danny DeVito said that despite an initial failure at the box office, Death to Smoochy continues to be discovered: "I think people got a lot out of Death to Smoochy, and the people who watched it reacted strongly. The studio didn't get Death to Smoochy. They've done that with a lot of films they really didn't promote and put out in the past. But if you watch Death to Smoochy, you'll do very well. It's very important. It's fun. Edward Norton is great. All the people in the film are great, Catherine Keener."

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  5. #005

    During the Ice Show, when Spinner/Smoochy The Rhino is shown lying dead in the film, the Chinese characters glowing on the ice read "Dead Rhino."

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  6. #006

    The choreography of the ice-skating shows at the end of the film was done by Canadian skater Elvis Stojko.

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  7. #007

    The North Tower of the World Trade Center can be seen while Rainbow Randolph dances on a small bench in Duane Park on Duane Street in Lower Manhattan. In the DVD commentary, Danny DeVito explained that it was the only shot he was involved in and that he actually designed the shot himself. This means the film was shot 5 months before the September 11 attacks.

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  8. #008

    According to Edward Norton, Danny DeVito approached him for Death to Smoochy in Montreal, where Norton was shooting The Score (2001) and DeVito was shooting Heist (2001). Norton also said that DeVito approached him to play Rainbow Randolph, but that after reading the script Norton wanted to play Smoochy instead.

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  9. #009

    Michael Rispoli, who plays Spinner Dunn, based his strong boxer character on "Slapsy" Maxie Rosenbloom, a boxer who transitioned to acting.

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  10. #010

    In the original script, the Smoochy costume was orange.

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  11. #011

    This was Richard Hamilton's last film.

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  12. #012

    There is a scene in which Catherine Keener steals a Frisbee from Edward Norton, which closely resembles a shot in The War of the Roses (1989), also directed by Danny DeVito.

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  13. #013

    Roger Ebert called Death to Smoochy the worst film of 2002.

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Characters & Cast (3)

  1. #014

    Jim Carrey was at one point committed to starring but ultimately left to make The Majestic (2001).

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  2. #015

    Singer Henry Rollins auditioned for the role of Spinner. In his spoken-word performance DVD Henry Rollins: Up for It (2001), Rollins details his first audition with Danny DeVito, part of which consisted of throwing a chair at DeVito.

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  3. #016

    Robin Williams was a longtime friend of Danny DeVito and his wife Rhea Perlman and had wanted to work with him for years, but they had not yet done so before this film. After Jim Carrey handed over the lead, DeVito urged Williams to take the role, but this would be the first and only time they worked together, as Williams died by suicide in 2014.

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Deeper Meaning (1)

  1. #017

    The title sequence, including the best broadcast on screen, uses the Comic Sans typeface at its end. Designed by Microsoft in 1995 for texts aimed at children, the font has been part of every version of Windows since. The use of a font made by one of the most capitalist companies in the US and aimed at children reflects the film's theme quite well.

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Sources & editorial notes

Reference databases

  • IMDb IMDb title page (trivia)

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