The interior ship shots were filmed in two separate sound stages at Warner Bros. studios in Burbank, California, one in which the ballroom set was built "right-side-up," the other where the identical set was built upside-down.
The "upside-down" set was built on top of a large water tank in the sound stage so that it can be filled with water and drained in a matter of hours.
'Josh Lucas' was injured on set during underwater filming when Kurt Russell banged his flashlight into Lucas' head, injuring his eye.
Many members of the cast and crew came down with minor infections due to being in dirty water for so many hours a day.
Dylan Johns ('Josh Lucas') jogging on the deck of the ship during the beginning credits the evening before the ship capsizes pays homage to the original film, The Poseidon Adventure (1972). In it, James Martin (Red Buttons) jogs on the deck of the ship before the night of capsizing. Mr Martin starts off by taking a deep breath at the deck railing before starting off, and Dylan ends his jog at the deck railing. Both wear a full jogging suit which are both the same color.
The wine that Richard Dreyfuss orders, Romanee-Conti, is the same wine that William Holden gave Robert Vaughn in "The Towering Inferno".
There was only one day of exterior filming done on the entire shoot. It was to get footage of Josh Lucas jogging that was eventually composited into the opening CG shot of the ship.
The producers wanted to shoot the movie at Fox Studios Baja, but it was unavailable at the time.
Robert Ramsey is also the name of the mayor in 'The Towering Inferno,' produced by Irwin Alle, the producer of the original 'The Poseidon Adventure.'