The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai

Top 10 Fun Facts

1. The name game: early titles for the film were Find the Jetcar, Said the President - A Buckaroo Banzai Thriller, and The Strange Case of Mr. Cigars.
2. The Lectroids from Planet 10 were originally "lepers" in Mac Rauch's script, and then became "lizards" before evolving into the reptilian aliens that appear in the movie. Charles Darwin would've been proud.
3. Peter Weller claims to have based his portrayal of Buckaroo Banzai on Albert Einstein, Leonardo da Vinci, Jacques Cousteau, Elia Kazan and Adam Ant (Google it, kids).
4. Acting! John Lithgow recorded the voice of an Italian tailor on the MGM lot to help develop an accent for Lizardo, while adopting the walk of an "old crab."
5. When filming began, director W. D. Richter had a 300-page "bible" called The Essential Buckaroo, filled with notes and countless early drafts of the script (you can bet the lizards and lepers were in there).
6. Where's that blooper reel? Peter Weller fondly recalls cracking up during Buckaroo's torture scene with Dr. Lizardo: "I never laughed so hard in my life! They had to stop takes over and over on that segment because I was laughing at the banter between [Christopher] Lloyd and [John] Lithgow."
7. When he wasn't busy giggling, Weller showed off his musical skills - he played the guitar and trumpet, performed his own vocals, and even learned to mime the piano convincingly.
8. Such a tease: the credits mention the upcoming Buckaroo Banzai Against the World Crime League, but the sequel was never made.
9. FOX considered developing a Buckaroo Banzai TV series in the late '90s, but the show never got out of the idea phase. Perhaps they were spooked by the colossal failure of UPN's Homeboys in Outer Space.
10. No pressure, but UK newspaper The Guardian lists Buckaroo Banzai as one of the thousand films to see before you die.

Cast

Crew