- At one point, the producers of the "Rush Hour" trilogy considered shooting a third and fourth installment, back-to-back.
- Steven Seagal was one of the first actors considered to play a villain. However, the screenplay underwent multiple rewrites that ultimately led to casting Hiroyuki Sanada as the film's main antagonist.
- As part of his dream cast, director Brett Ratner tried casting Aishwarya Rai and 'Li Gong (I)', but was turned down by both actresses.
- Brett Ratner also tried getting Tony Jaa to do the film, who turned it down due to scheduling conflicts with Ong bak 2 (2008).
- Jean-Claude Van Damme was another consideration for a villain in this film.
- This is Roman Polanski's first role in an American film in fifteen years (since Back in the U.S.S.R. (1992), an American-Japanese production in 1992), and only his second role in an American film in the past 33 years (since Chinatown (1974)).
- Actor Kevin Dillon was cast in a small role in Rush Hour 3 (2007). Filming for his show "Entourage" (2004) prevented Dillon from accepting the role, but it was turned into a storyline for Dillon's character Johnny Drama on "Entourage" (2004).
- The production crew agreed upon a $20 fine any time anyone's cell phone rang during shooting. The money would be donated to the homeless charity Chrysalis. By late February, it had over $600.
- Jackie Chan had a cracked sternum and bruises to his shins from his stunts. Watch the credits, for an outtake where Jackie throws a table backwards with his legs into himself, accidentally, at Genevieve's suite.
- In the airplane scene, Carter orders gefilte fish - a reference to a similar scene in Rush Hour 2 (2001) that never made the final cut, because of Chris Tucker's inability to pronounce the name of the dish at the time (See Rush Hour 2 (2001) trivia).
- Brett Ratner also tried to add basketball player Yao Ming to the cast, but the offer was declined. Ratner said he wanted to create a scene with Yao Ming similar to that of the scene with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who was also a basketball player, in Game of Death (1978), starring Bruce Lee.
- In the scenes where Lee is speaking to Kenji, Jackie Chan actually speaks in Japanese.
- Having worked with Brett Ratner in X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), actor Ian McKellen was asked to appear in this film in the role of Reynard. The part ultimately went to veteran actor Max von Sydow. Vinnie Jones, another co-star of X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), was also rumored to have been approached for a role in this film.
- In the scene when Lee and Carter first get in George's taxi, during the conversation, George says to Carter, "You guys can't even beat the Europeans in basketball anymore." He was referring to when Greece beat USA in the 2006 FIBA World Cup.
- Roselyn Sanchez does not reprise her role in this film, however her picture is shown when 'Jackie Chan' is on the plane to Paris.
- During the Dojo Scene in which Carter and Lee fight the giant, there is a picture in the middle of the shrine behind Master Yu. The picture is that of Chinese martial artist Huo Yuanjia, a Wushu master, and Chinese legend.
- Roman Polanski was a fan of the first two Rush Hour movies. When it was learned that this film is set in Paris, he asked the producers and Brett Ratner whether they can give him a small role to appear. They happily complied with his wish.
- As of February 2009, Chris Tucker's last three acting roles have only been the Rush Hour trilogy.
- In the tower fight scene, Kenji wields a Jian, a traditionally Chinese sword, and Lee wields a Katana, a traditionally Japanese sword. Ironically, Hiroyuki Sanada is Japanese, while Jackie Chan is Chinese.
>>> WARNING: Here Be Spoilers <<<
Trivia items below here contain information that may give away important plot points. You may not want to read any further if you've not already seen this title.
- SPOILER: The sword that Kenji is wielding during the final fight is a Jian, a traditional Chinese sword, while Lee is using a Katana, a traditional Japanese sword.
- SPOILER: Portions of the "Tower Duel" sequence were actually filmed in the upper section of the Eiffel Tower. Other portions were replicated built sets.
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