FILM · 2014 · USA
Divergent
- Directed by
- Neil Burger
- Runtime
- 140 min
- Studio
- Summit Entertainment, Red Wagon Entertainment
56 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Sep 2026
In a world divided into factions based on personality types, Tris learns that she's been classified as Divergent and won't fit in. When she discovers a plot to destroy Divergents, Tris and the mysterious Four must find out what makes Divergents dangerous before it's too late.
Summary: TMDB
All facts (56)
- #001
The sound Peter (Miles Teller) makes when Tris (Shailene Woodley) punches him in the throat is real. Woodley was hesitant because she did not want to hurt Teller. As filming went on, Teller and Woodley became more aggressive with each other, and during one take Woodley struck Teller in the throat when he was not expecting it. That take is the one used in the film.
- #002
Theo James performed his own fight sequences without any stunt double.
- #003
Kate Winslet was five months pregnant during filming. Although she was on set for only four weeks, her pregnancy reached the point of becoming noticeable. She was shot in the waist or directed to carry folders, files and an iPad.
- #004
Shailene Woodley was the only actress considered for the role of Tris. No other actress auditioned for the part.
- #005
Miles Teller initially auditioned for the role of Four but was told he would not get it. Months later, the producers watched The Spectacular Now (2013) and were so impressed that they called Teller and offered him the role of Eric, who was meant to be antagonistic and intimidating toward Four. Teller turned the offer down because he felt he could not pull off being intimidating opposite Theo James. He was later offered the role of Peter, which he accepted after his friend and former co-star Shailene Woodley sent him a message asking him to take the part so they could work together again.
- #006
While being zipped into the lining after capturing the flag, the person who opens the door and is the first to climb onto the roof is Divergent series author Veronica Roth.
- #007
Kate Winslet said she accepted the role of Jeanine because she wanted to do something very different from her usual roles and also wanted to make a film her children could watch. According to her, they became quite popular at school once word spread that their mother was Jeanine.
- #008
Contains a major spoiler — show
The scene from the book in which Edward is stabbed in the eye with a butter knife by Peter was filmed, but it was later cut because it was deemed too violent for a PG-13 film. With the scene included, the film would have received an R rating.
- #009
Shailene Woodley and Miles Teller had trouble shooting the fight scenes because of their close friendship. Woodley struggled in particular, and at one point she referred to Teller as "Sutter," his character's name in The Spectacular Now (2013), in which the pair played a couple. Teller had to pull Woodley aside and argue with her to get her to be aggressive toward him.
- #010
The film's budget was initially 40 million dollars, but Lionsgate later raised it to 80 million dollars because of the success of The Hunger Games (2012).
- #011
Shailene Woodley initially turned down the role of Tris but changed her mind after talking about it with Jennifer Lawrence.
- #012
Production designer Andy Nicholson looked to 1920s abstract Russian constructivist art as inspiration for Four's full back tattoo. The sharp lines may look conventional on paper, but they are grasped and curled on Theo James's body; they need to be touched. "It was about following the lines that your hand might follow if you're feeling someone's back," Nicholson explains. To apply the temporary tattoos, makeup artist Brad Wilder divided the transfer paper into about 40 pieces, creating a "giant jigsaw puzzle." Assembling the design on James's back then took three people more than three hours. The actor listened to jazz music to pass the time.
- #013
The entire cast went through two months of basic training camp before filming began.
- #014
Tris is 16 years old and is played by 23-year-old Shailene Woodley. In the book, Four is 18 years old, but he is played by 28-year-old Theo James.
- #015
A love scene between Tris and Four was filmed but had to be cut because of the film's PG-13 rating.
- #016
Kate Winslet joined the production somewhat later than most of the other actors. As a result, she deliberately was not overly friendly toward them when Jeanine was on screen, hoping this would help reduce the tension. After a few days she began to behave more kindly.
- #017
The elevated train maps used in the train cars dated from 1913.
- #018
The fence around Chicago is modeled on the Duga-2 antenna array, a Soviet-era over-the-horizon radar transmitter located in Ukraine, in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. Broadcasts from the antenna caused interference on commercial and amateur radio. Its NATO codename is Steel Yard, and it is also known as the Russian Woodpecker because of its 10 Hz repeating signal.
- #019
To prepare for her role in Divergent, Shailene Woodley received several days of firearms training from the Secret Service-style security group known as the DPS group. The firearms instructors in the DPS group are real-life LAPD officers Charles Wunder and Jamie McBride, the same officers the main characters in End of Watch (2012) were roughly based on. They were partners in the Newton Division from the mid-to-late '90s.
- #020
In The Fault in Our Stars (2014), Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort play boyfriend and girlfriend, while in Divergent they play siblings.
- #021
Contains a major spoiler — show
A initiate named Edward is present throughout the first stage of training: he helps pull Christina up from the edge of the cliff, is the first chosen by Eric to capture the flag, says the line "You're the only one who's ever stood up to him," places first, and celebrates when the stage-one rankings are announced, among other things. However, he is never seen again after the first stage of training. Edward, who appears in the book but not in the film, was eliminated by the weaker Peter, who stabbed him in the eye with a butter knife while he slept. Al also feels that Tris has threatened him and tries to eliminate her by throwing her into the chasm in the film.
- #022
When the factions are first introduced, each faction's symbol is visible: the Erudite eye looking up from a microscope, the Amity tree in the middle of a field, the Candor scales during a court hearing, the Dauntless flames on the side of a building, and Abnegation holding hands while helping the Factionless.
- #023
Contains a major spoiler — show
In the film, when Tris is jumped by three hooded figures (who later try to throw her into the chasm), only one removes his hood, revealing himself to be Al. In the book she also discovers that the others are fellow initiates named Peter and Drew. However, if you watch the fight scene closely, you can actually see that Miles Teller (Peter) is one of the other two.
- #024
Although most of the weapons used in the film are props with CGI muzzle flashes, the futuristic-looking handgun seen during Four's/Tris's hallucination is a real firearm. It is a Chiappa 'Rhino', available in various calibers, finishes and barrel lengths.
- #025
The producers were aware of the story's superficial similarities to The Hunger Games, but they felt that Divergent's urban world would contrast with the rural feel of The Hunger Games and help differentiate the two.
- #026
The film rights were purchased after the success of the Twilight (2008) films, but the project did not move into production until The Hunger Games (2012) became a success. To distinguish Divergent from The Hunger Games, director Neil Burger emphasized the urban setting (as opposed to the rural setting of the arena in The Hunger Games) and used a great deal of sharp, neon color.
- #027
Contains a major spoiler — show
In the film, Tris fights and defeats Molly, an initiate guarding the flag. This fight does not appear in the book, but there is a brawl between the two at the training center in which Tris decisively beats the stronger Molly and improves her ranking.
- #028
Pop star Ellie Goulding provided Tris's "inner voice" in the film's music. As Theo James said in an interview, you can hear her voice "peppered" into the film's score in the background of key scenes.
- #029
Contains a major spoiler — show
In the book, Christina is the first to capture the flag, and Tris says to her, "You're already the hero of the day." In the film, Tris captures the flag first, but Christina quickly joins her, and Christina carries the flag on the way back.
- #030
Early on, Zoë Kravitz bought the cast tickets to an Erykah Badu concert in Chicago, and that is where they all began to bond.
- #031
While filming the film's public scenes, the producers used the cover name "Catbird".
- #032
One of the main things that drew Woodley to the project was the relationship between Tris and Four: "It's very different than the Bella/Edward relationship; they're completely on the opposite sides of the spectrum."
- #033
As noted elsewhere, Miles Teller was initially reluctant to sign on to the film and was persuaded by Shailene Woodley. Apparently Woodley convinced him to accept by telling him she would punch him in the face on screen.
- #034
Shailene Woodley and Theo James became close friends during the film's promotion.
- #035
Contains a major spoiler — show
In the book, a character named Uriah appears many times as Tris's friend and ally. He is a Dauntless-born initiate and has an older brother named Zeke who was initiated in Four's year, but neither appears in the film. However, in the scene after the flag-capture scene, a Dauntless boy asks Tris to join them for a tradition (the zip line down from the Hancock Building). This character, named Ezra (a character specific to the film), replaces Uriah, who invites Tris to join in the book. Curiously, Ezra matches the book's description of Uriah, who will first appear in the second film of the Divergent series, The Divergent Series: Insurgent (2015), played by Keiynan Lonsdale.
- #036
Contains a major spoiler — show
In the book, Tris has three tattoos: birds on her collarbone, the Abnegation symbol on her right shoulder (her birth faction) and the Dauntless symbol on her left shoulder (her newly chosen faction). In the film we only see her get the birds, but if you look carefully the other two are visible as well. For example, you can see the Abnegation symbol when Tris and Four watch the sunset after entering Four's fear landscape.
- #037
In the similarly themed Hunger Games series, Zoë Kravitz's father, Lenny Kravitz, appears.
- #038
Summit/Lionsgate met with some actors and prepared them for upcoming experiences involving the eager fan base.
- #039
Some of the violence from the book was toned down to secure a PG-13 rating. There is less visual violence (e.g. blood splatter) and more "emotional violence."
- #040
Aaron Eckhart was initially cast as Andrew Prior but left the cast before filming began. Tony Goldwyn was later brought on board.
- #041
Contains a major spoiler — show
In the book, after Tris is shot in the shoulder, she endures a long and painful recovery for the rest of the book and part of the second book. In the film, her being shot is not very significant and she suffers very little pain.
- #042
Lucas Till, Jack Reynor, Jeremy Irvine, Alex Pettyfer, Brenton Thwaites, Alexander Ludwig and Luke Bracey were considered for the lead roles.
- #043
In the book, the second person to jump is Christina. In the film, it is a Dauntless-born male.
- #044
After the first Dauntless test, the initiates receive their rankings after Eric. However, "Tris" is misspelled as "Triss."
- #045
Dauntless is believed to protect society from enemies, but in reality the factions inside the fence have no enemies.
- #046
Contains a major spoiler — show
In the "Free Four" book, a tattoo is done on Four using a needle, but in the film Tori uses something more like ink transfer to put the three birds on Tris.
- #047
The producers were looking for a director who could handle a difficult adaptation, had a beloved character, and would not be overwhelmed by bringing an epic visual scale to the film. After seeing presentations from many different filmmakers, they realized Neil Burger was the best choice.
- #048
In the original script, Molly had no lines and was essentially a fight role.
- #049
Both Maggie Q (Tori) and Jai Courtney (Eric) appeared in one of the Die Hard films. Q played the villain Mai Linh in Live Free or Die Hard (2007), and Courtney played Jack McClane in A Good Day to Die Hard (2013).
- #050
The structure on the wall is the Duga radar array. One is located in the Chernobyl Exclusion Zone. It operated as an early-warning radar system for the Soviet Union from July 1976 to December 1989. Because of the noise it made, it was jokingly nicknamed the Woodpecker.
- #051
This is not the first film Shailene Woodley and Ansel Elgort appeared in together. If Woodley had not turned down the role of Carrie White, the first could have been Carrie (2013). Elgort played Tommy Ross, a potential love interest, in that film. A year later, both appeared in The Fault in Our Stars (2014).
- #052
Ashley Judd and Tony Goldwyn, who play Tris's parents in this film, had previously played, respectively, a kidnapped victim and her brutal kidnapper in Kiss the Girls (1997).
- #053
While talking about helping a woman carry her packages, Ansel Elgort says to Shailene Woodley 'what if she were blind or an amputee.' In The Fault in Our Stars (2014), Elgort is an amputee and he and Woodley have a blind friend.
- #054
Trump Tower can be seen in some of the city scenes, but the controversial 20-meter sign on the 16th floor is not there. The sign was not put up until May 2014, two months after the film's release.
- #055
In the flag capture scene, Peter and Eric are hit with neurological stimulant arrows in the same places: the leg and the chest.
- #056
Shailene Woodley was considered for the role of Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games (2012), in which Lenny Kravitz, the father of Zoe Kravitz, appeared.
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