Jamie Lee Curtis instituted a swear can on set to prevent "trucker talk," as Dan Aykroyd called it. Aykroyd said in an interview: "It was $5 for this word and $10 for another word and by end of the movie the kids had about five grand in there."
Screenwriter Laurice Elehwany said the film was inspired by a childhood friend that lived in a funeral home.
The house used as Vada's house was actually a bed-and-breakfast in Bartow, Florida. It closed in 2013.
The willow tree seen throughout the movie is not a real willow tree. Finding a perfect pond with a willow tree was so hard that the creators found a different tree, removed all of its branches, and replaced them with fake willow tree branches.
The film's original title was "Born Jaundiced." The producers offered $500 to whichever Imagine Entertainment employee could come up with the best alternative. Most of the film is set in a funeral home, inspiring suggestions including "Mourning Glory", "In Lieu of Flowers," and "Dearly Departed". Other alternatives included "Vada!", which was rejected because it sounded like a South African uprising, and "I Am Woman". Ultimately, producer Brian Grazer came up with My Girl.