Known for his trademark spontaneity of improvisation, Robin Williams was given free range by director Chris Columbus to do what he needed. However, his improvisation can occasionally spark off numerous references to other works that prove to be legal headaches for movie studios. The scene where Daniel speaks with his wife and refers to her clothes as "this lovely Dances with Wolves (1990) motif", required legal clearance for the studio to put it in the film. Associate producer Paula DuPré Pesmen later kept track of every reference Williams made while improvising.
Harvey Fierstein had seen and been impressed by Robin Williams's impersonation of him on Comic Relief. He heard through friends that Williams would be playing a character with a gay brother, and approached him about playing the part.
When Anne Fine was approached to make a movie out of her novel, her original choice for the lead role was Warren Beatty. Because of Beatty's reputation as a great womanizer she thought it would be hysterical to see him dress up and pretend to be a woman.
When the mail man "Mr Sprinkles" visits Mrs Doubtfire when she has her own show at the end of the movie, he calls her "Mrs Doubtflier" when handing the mail to her.
What are the differences between the old British PG Version and the Uncensored Version?
A
This pretty amusing comedy movie at first was released in a censored version in British cinemas. Additionally, the first prints of both the VHS and the DVD version were censored in the same way. One dialogue which included sexual innuendo had to be cut out. Finally, in 2003 and 2007 the movie was re-released on DVD and this time in its uncensored version. A detailed comparison between both versions can be found here.