FILM · 2012
Project X
24 archived facts 5 topics 1 source Last reviewed Oct 2026
All facts (24)
- #001
Some of the footage was shot by the cast using cell phones, Flip, iPhone and Blackberry phones handed out by the crew. Because the cast was recording almost constantly, more than 10 hours of footage was captured.
- #002
Project X was the most pirated film of 2012, with roughly 8,720,000 downloads.
- #003
To minimize disruption to local residents, the film was shot on a set rather than in a real neighborhood. This proved a smart move, since the set was effectively thrown away during production. Neighboring residents nevertheless complained to the Burbank police about the noise.
- #004
To build a convincing bond between them, leads Thomas Mann, Oliver Cooper and Jonathan Daniel Brown were sent to Disneyland and to Big Bear City, California, for a weekend.
- #005
Most of the cast consisted of first-time performers hired through an open casting call.
- #006
In its opening weekend, Project X exceeded its production budget by 9 million dollars.
- #007
The film is broadly based on Corey Worthington's (Delaney) house party in Australia. Then a teenager, he posted the party's address on MySpace, drawing around 500 people and causing more than 20,000 dollars in property damage. His party drew the attention of journalists, and he was widely disliked by the public after being attacked by a group of teenagers following the events.
- #008
The studio disliked the title "Project X," considering it better suited to a science fiction film, and suggested renaming the film "Happy Birthday, Thomas Kub" after a message seen on a school jumbotron. Producer Todd Phillips objected, saying first that the studio's proposed title made the film look like a good-natured buddy movie rather than the no-holds-barred comedy it actually was, and second that he and the writers saw Costa as more of a focus character than Thomas. In the end neither side could come up with a better title, so the finished film kept the title "Project X."
- #009
Thomas Mann is one of the few cast members with prior acting experience. He had to audition seven times before landing the role.
- #010
Although the party appears to have more than a thousand attendees, only around 200 extras were used during filming.
- #011
Project X is a rare film in which most of the leads use their real names. This was done so that all the footage shot by the extras could be used.
- #012
Project X was shot over a period of five weeks.
- #013
When the camera catches a young woman urinating, she signals for it to move away. According to a popular internet rumor, the woman was urinating in a corner because there was no bathroom on set and was upset at having her privacy violated this way; the editors were only allowed to use the footage by paying her extra. Her statement is ambiguous, however, and she appears to almost smile or laugh as she turns the camera away from her bodily function.
- #014
All of the young people in the film, including every extra at the party, were 18 or older.
- #015
Writer Michael Bacall worked on the script in the evenings while working during the day on the screenplays for 21 Jump Street (2012) and Scott Pilgrim vs. The World (2010).
- #016
The high school scenes were shot at Palisades High School in Pacific Palisades, California.
- #017
Dax Flame, who was the 16th most subscribed YouTuber of all time before appearing in this film, got his role through an open casting call. Unfortunately his YouTube and acting careers declined after the film, and as of March 2020 he was trying to make a living at a sushi restaurant in Los Angeles.
- #018
Many of the small oddities at the party were improvised by the extras, including the girl who was caught urinating because she actually had to urinate.
- #019
The street where the party takes place is the same street where the Murtaughs live in the Lethal Weapon films.
- #020
Project X was a working title until the film was officially named.
- #021
The MDMA (ecstasy) pills hidden inside the garden gnome were actually mints made specifically for the film production.
- #022
Jonathan Daniel Brown told SpitballingPod that there were various ideas for a sequel that never came to fruition. He referenced one discussed idea that involved hiring a younger relative of Vladimir Putin to throw a party in Russia.
- #023
Director Nima Nourizadeh's background in commercials landed him the directing job. He initially moved from London to Los Angeles thinking he would have two weeks to develop the script. He ended up staying for two years.
- #024
Simon Rex appears as a drunk rapper in the film's extended version.
Sources & editorial notes
Reference databases
Sources for the entries on this page
- IMDb IMDb kaydı
Information from external sources is independently selected, consolidated and edited by Arka Evren. Sources are listed for verification and further reading. Encyclopedia text is used under its licence (CC BY-SA). How we work