Richard Kelly consciously sought out actors that he felt had been pigeonholed and wanted to showcase their "undiscovered talents."
As of 2013, Richard Kelly still considers this his proudest accomplishment, calling it his "misunderstood child"
Although he always refuses such collaborations, Moby did the film's score because he was such a big Donnie Darko (2001) fan that he couldn't resist Richard Kelly's offer.
Wallace Shawn told film critic Nathan Rabin he did not understand the film after initially reading the screenplay, but signed on as he was impressed by Richard Kelly and flattered that the part was written specifically for him; ultimately, he said that he still found the film mostly incomprehensible after three viewings, but "liked it very much".