According to a 28 Nov 1987 Screen International article, Fatal Attraction was a feature-length adaptation of the British short film, Diversion, written and directed by James Dearden in 1979. Following its positive reception at the Chicago Film Festival in 1980, producing partners Sherry Lansing and Stanley R. Jaffe approached Dearden to expand the story, but the 5 Oct 1987 NYT stated that his script was rejected by Paramount president Michael Eisner and several other major studios on the grounds that the character of “Dan Gallagher” was too “unsympathetic.” In 1984, Ned Tanen took over as head of Paramount, and the project was approved for development.
       A 31 Oct 1985 LADN item reported the casting of Michael Douglas, who, according to production notes in AMPAS library files, accepted the role after meeting Jaffe on a flight to Los Angeles, CA. Dearden was originally attached to direct, but as the budget expanded to nearly $15 million, the studio decided to hire a more established filmmaker. While Brian De Palma was rumored to be involved, the position eventually went to Adrian Lyne, whose erotic drama, Nine ½ Weeks (1986, see entry), had recently surpassed box-office expectations.
       In the 20 Sep 1987 LAHExam, Lyne stated that he initially wanted French actress Isabelle Adjani to play opposite Douglas, but later decided to cast “against type” by selecting Glenn Close. A 9 Mar 1988 LAT news item suggested that Ellen Barkin was among those also considered for the role, but she strongly objected to the script’s anti-feminist undertones.
       According to the 1 Oct 1986 Var and 3 Jul 1988 LAT, writer-director Nicholas Meyer contributed to the screenplay. Although Var stated that Meyer worked on the project for roughly five weeks, a Writers Guild of America (WGA) arbitration ruled that his changes were not significant enough to warrant shared credit with Dearden.
       Production notes indicate that the eleven-week filming schedule began 29 Sep 1986. Principal photography took place entirely on locations in New York City and Westchester County, NY, including: Wall Street; Greenwich Village; Gramercy Park; Rockefeller Center; Central Park; Mr. Chow restaurant; La Goulue, a French bistro on the Upper East Side; and Club Broadway Latin disco bar. Production designer Mel Bourne reportedly consulted with the actors before styling the interiors of Dan and “Alex Forrest’s” Manhattan apartments. Although the 14 Nov 1986 Publishers Weekly claimed that filmmakers intended to use the notoriously messy office of Harper & Row executive editor Lawrence P. Ashmead to stand in for the office of Alex Forrest, the character’s workplace is never seen in the final film. The former Irene Selznick estate in Bedford, NY, doubled as the exterior of the Gallaghers’ suburban home, while interiors were shot at a house in Mount Kisco. Additional Westchester County locations included Rye Playland and the Westchester County Medical Center in Valhalla.
       As reported in an 18 Feb 1992 LAT article, the ending of Dearden’s original screenplay featured Alex successfully framing Dan for her murder, leading to his imprisonment. However, Lyne was unsatisfied with the conclusion, and decided to include a cassette tape that absolves Dan of guilt. In the shooting script, “Beth Gallagher” discovers the tape Alex gives to Dan, in which Alex threatens suicide. Once Dan is released from jail, Alex slits her own throat in a reenactment of the Giacomo Puccini opera, Madama Butterfly, which is referenced earlier in the film.
       Following the conclusion of principal photography, a completed cut of the film was screened for test audiences in Los Angeles; San Francisco, CA; and Seattle, WA. Although several reports claimed that audiences demanded a harsher fate for Close’s character, Lyne insists he was solely responsible for changing the ending because he felt the final scene did not match the emotional drama of the rest of the story. Six months after principal photography wrapped, Lyne and the principal cast returned to Bedford for re-shoots, which the 5 Oct 1987 NYT estimated cost Paramount an additional $1.3 million.
       While Paramount shopped the film overseas, a 30 Oct 1987 LAT news item indicated that the original suicide ending received positive feedback among Japanese distributors. However, exhibitors agreed to let the studio test market both cuts for audiences, and the 20 Jan 1988 Var reported that Japanese moviegoers ruled in favor of the U.S. version. A 21 Jul 1994 DV brief stated that the alternate ending was screened on the Showtime network following the film’s cable broadcast premiere, and was later included as an extra in various home video formats, including the LaserDisc and DVD.
       The 23 Sep 1987 HR stated that Paramount, anticipating positive word-of-mouth, opened the film in just 758 theaters on 18 Sep 1987 before expanding to 1,100—1,200 theaters the following week. NYT listed an opening weekend gross of $7.6 million, and the studio’s strategy paid off: Fatal Attraction remained at the top of the box-office for eight consecutive weeks, as reported by the 18 Nov 1987 DV. Early the following year, a 2 Feb 1988 LAT box-office chart indicated that domestic earnings totaled $140.6 million to date, eventually becoming the second biggest hit of 1987 behind 3 Men and a Baby (see entry).
       Generally lauded among critics, Fatal Attraction received Academy Award nominations in the categories of Directing, Editing, Writing (Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium), Actress in a Leading Role (Glenn Close), Actress in a Supporting Role (Anne Archer), and Best Picture. The film ranked #28 on AFI’s 2001 list of 100 Years...100 Thrills, while Alex Forrest was named the #7 Villain on AFI’s 2003 ranking of 100 Years...100 Heroes & Villains.
       According to a 25 Mar 2014 review in The Guardian, Dearden’s stage adaptation of Fatal Attraction debuted at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in London’s West End, and the 1 Jul 2015 HR announced that Paramount Television and producer Stanley Jaffe planned to develop the story as a short order “event series” to air on the Fox network.
       Fatal Attraction marked the theatrical feature debut of actor Jonathan Brandis.
       End credits state: “The Producers gratefully acknowledge the cooperation and assistance of: The Westchester County Medical Center; the Westchester County Office of Economic Development, Film Division; and extend special thanks to the people of the Village of Mt. Kisco, N.Y.”