Behind-The-Scenes Stories From The Set Of 'Pineapple Express'

Inspiration for Pineapple Express came not from the personal experiences of the writers, but from a performance by Academy Award-nominated actor Brad Pitt.

Producer and co-writer Judd Apatow noted that the idea for the film was inspired by Pitt’s portrayal of Floyd in the 1993 crime film True Romance. As Apatow explained in 2008:

I thought it would be funny to make a movie in which you follow that character out of his apartment and watch him get chased by bad guys.

Floyd became the basis for James Franco's Saul, with the storyline built around his troubles. 

One of the early scenes of the 2008 comedy centers around the main characters’ awe of an intricately crafted cross joint. Since then, fans of the film have flocked to social media to publish how-to videos to create their own versions.

They could have just asked Pineapple Express star Seth Rogen and co-writer Evan Goldberg. Apparently, their "expertise" in joint rolling came in handy for the movie. On the 10th anniversary of the film, Rogen revealed the truth behind the joints on Twitter:

In #PineappleExpress, me and my co-writer Evan had to roll all the cross joints needed to film (about 100) ourselves because nobody else on the crew could roll them properly.

Given the subject matter of the film, the creators wanted a marketing campaign that would attract the right audience. Beyond the red band trailer that was released (and initially leaked), filmmakers took to outdoor advertising to attract viewers.

Rogen explained that the studio created a billboard for the film that included actual smoke billowing from the signage. However, the realism of the board created issues for residents. He tweeted:

We DID have a smoking billboard for #PineappleExpress that got shut down by the fire department because people keep [sic] thinking it was on fire.

Pineapple Express met several difficulties on its journey from concept to release. One such road bump involved the budget for the film.

Originally, the filmmakers requested a budget of $40 million to make the film. However, Sony hesitated in offering that large of a budget to what was considered a stoner film. Instead, the filmmakers were given only $25 million to complete their project.

As Rogen reflected on the budget wrangling, "A $40 million [budget] would've been nice... Because it's a weed movie, you get $25 million."

Serving as a running joke throughout the film, Red’s lemon-colored Daewoo Lanos helps save the day in the end. Red crashes through the barn to rescue the protagonists and take down the bad guy.

However, the infamous Daewoo was not originally planned for use in the film. Initially, a Ford Fiesta was his vehicle of choice. However, Ford did not approve of their car being used in an aggressive scene and prohibited the filmmakers from including it in the movie. Rogen then decided to go with the Lanos and found its use "ultimately much funnier."

It's not uncommon for actors to find themselves subjected to long hours of wearing heavy costumes or prosthetics to complete their roles. For his role as Red, Pineapple Express actor Danny McBride had to endure a day's worth of sitting in a chair. That may not sound strenuous, but he did so while tied up in several layers of duct tape.

Due to the complexity of McBride's bindings, he could not be removed from his seated position without replacing everything. So, according to Rogen, he remained in the seat all day instead.