According to Rick Baker, the prosthetic make-up Jim Carrey wore took about two hours to apply and one hour to remove. It is rumored that Carrey felt so confined and uncomfortable in the latex skin that he sought counseling from a CIA agent who taught him torture-resistance techniques.

The line "6:30 p.m. Dinner with me; I can't cancel that again." was improvised by Jim Carrey.

The scene where The Grinch is directing his dog, Max, before stealing Christmas, is Jim Carrey making fun of Director Ron Howard, imitating his style of directing. Howard found the scene hilarious, and decided to include it in the film.

Ron Howard was so thankful for Jim Carrey putting up with the uncomfortable hours to apply his make-up, that during filming he himself put on the Grinch suit with full make-up, and directed one day with the suit on. He intended this to be a show of appreciation to Carrey; however, when Carrey saw Howard in full Grinch outfit, he was angered, believing it was a stunt double who "looked nothing like him."

Jim Carrey spent 92 days in Grinch make-up, spending two hours in the morning getting in, and one hour in the evening to get out. According to Carrey, he became a "Zen Master" while sitting in the make-up chair.

The Whoville set was built mostly on the backlot of Universal Studios behind the Bates Motel. During a break in filming, Jim Carrey surprised and scared tourists on the Universal Backlot Tour, by running out of the hotel wearing a dress and brandishing a knife. Nobody recognized him, and the tour guide at Universal Studios will tell you the story when you pass by the hotel on the Backlot Tour.

No movie, other than this, has featured so many characters in heavy make-up and costumes since The Wizard of Oz (1939).

Jim Carrey, with no accompaniment or anything to alter his voice, sang a few verses of the signature song "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch."

In the final scene, Cindy Lou Who passes Max (the Grinch's dog) a plate of "Green Eggs and Ham," in reference to Dr. Suess' other book published August 12, 1960.

Jim Carrey's Grinch suit is covered in yak hair, which was dyed green, and sewn onto a spandex suit.

Sir Anthony Hopkins recorded all the narration for the movie in one day.

Suss Cousins, a Los Angeles-based sweater designer (whose first name is pronounced just like Dr. Seuss), along with two other knitters, produced two hundred fifty pieces of original knitwear for this movie (including eight identical red-striped sweaters for Jim Carrey) in four months. That works out to 83.3 sweaters per person in just one hundred twenty days, which is quite amazing, as all were hand knitted.

The original Grinch was not green. Like everything else in the book, he was black and white with some red and pink splotches, but Ron Howard wanted the film to also be an adaptation of the Chuck Jones cartoon.

Audrey Geisel came to the set of Man on the Moon (1999) to see if Jim Carrey was right to play the Grinch. He was so deep into the character of Andy Kaufman, however he had to essentially do an impression of himself doing an impression of The Grinch, and that was what got him the gig.

The photo of the Grinch in the Whoville newspaper has the Grinch in the same pose as an infamous alleged photo taken of Bigfoot, also known as Sasquatch, from the Patterson-Gimlin film. Another Christmas movie, Elf, would similarly feature its main character, Buddy the Elf, walking near Central Park and mimicking the walking style of Bigfoot/Sasquatch.

Jim Carrey's yellow contact lenses were so uncomfortable that he wasn't able to wear them at times during filming. Some shots of his eyes were colored in post-production.

Jim Carrey accepted the role of The Grinch when he heard a tape of a kid's choir singing the song "You're A Mean One, Mr. Grinch."

Top-selling movie ticket of 2000, fifty million sold.

When the grinch pulls the sheet off the table all the silverware was scripted to fall off with the sheet. Jim pulled the sheet off so well that when nothing came off he went back ruined the table himself.

Actors and actresses went to Who-School with a choreographer, learning how to move and be comfortable being a Who.

This is the most successful movie of Jim Carrey's career.

As of filming, this movie had the largest set at Universal.

Some statistics: Make-up appliances used during production: approximately eight thousand. Props created for the film: over three hundred - Number of ornaments: over eight thousand. Number of candy canes: one thousand nine hundred thirty-eight. Crushed marble used for snow on Who suburbs exterior sets: one hundred fifty-two thousand pounds. Outfits created by wardrobe: four hundred forty-three. Number of sound stages used: eleven. Make-up artists used on busiest days: forty-five. Styrofoam used to build sets: two million linear feet (or six miles, if it was cut into standard board length).

Many Cirque du Soleil performers were used for the more acrobatic tricks and stunts in the movie. They can be spotted in the beginning as some of the Whos in the parade.

Jim Carrey admitted to feeling ashamed for not trying to prevent some of the adult humor in this film, and has repeatedly stated that all of the jokes he ad-libbed were age appropriate. He then found out that Ron Howard had removed many other jokes that were even raunchier, but had to keep some of it, due to what they both claim as "studio interference".

The Grinch is the only character who breaks the fourth wall in the film. He actively tries to avoid speaking in rhyme and even interacts with the narrator.

After The Grinch leaves Whoville for the second time, the camera pans up and a statue of an Elephant can be seen, in reference to "Horton Hears a Who." Jim Carrey would later go on to voice Horton in the animated film of the same name.

Everything in the film revolves around a swirl, like the original drawings of the book. This includes the clouds. In several scenes, the initials "C.H.", "J.C.", and "R.H." briefly form as the clouds move. They stand for Clint Howard, Jim Carrey, and Ron Howard.

Jeremy Howard (Drew Lou Who) shaved off his eyebrows for the duration of production, to help cut make-up time in half.

There are forty thousand computer generated trees in the opening shot sequence.

In the original adaptation of the Grinch, the Grinch's main dislike of Christmas is due to the loud noise and extreme gluttony. However, for the movie, an extensive backstory was created to explain why the Grinch dislikes Christmas.

Author Dr. Seuss (Theodore Seuss Geisel) and (after his death) his widow had been approached previously to authorize a live-action version of the story. But Seuss was unhappy with his previous live-action effort, The 5,000 Fingers of Dr. T, and turned down any such proposals. But then, after the success of "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" at the Old Globe Theater in San Diego, Mrs. Geisel saw the potential of a live-action interpretation.

This was the highest grossing Christmas movie since Home Alone.

Cinematographer Donald Peterman's final film before his death in 2011. He was unable to shoot any more, due to the injuries he sustained in an accident on the set of Mighty Joe Young (1998). He found it difficult working on this film, due to the after-effects of his injuries, and by the end of shooting, much of his work had been taken over by his son, Second Unit Cinematographer Keith Peterman.

The inscription on the coins in the store is "E Pluribus Whonum."

Approximately six hundred visual effects were used in the film, totalling forty-three minutes of screentime.

Max was originally going to be a CGI dog.

For a while, Tim Burton was considering to direct, but could not, due to a conflict with another movie.

According to the set designers, Medieval, Moroccan, and Islamic influences were used as architectural references in the books.

When the Grinch drove the little car, when he was destroying Christmas, Jim Carrey said that it was really hard to drive and it took him forever to get the feel of the car.

During shooting, more than one thousand man hours were used to apply the extensive make-up on the actors and actresses.

DIRECTOR TRADEMARK: (Ron Howard): Ron Howard gave a role to his brother, Clint Howard, as Whobris, the Mayor's assistant, and one to his father, Rance Howard, as the Elderly Timekeeper.

Costume designer Rita Ryack had a bit of fun in designing different Whos, among them was a Chanel-Who, and a Prada-Who.

When the Grinch is sucking up all the presents at the Lou's house, there is a goldfish in a bowl, a reference to Dr Seuss' The Cat in the Hat.

Max, the male dog, is played by Kelley, a female dog.

Eddie Murphy, Tom Hanks, Jack Nicholson and Tim Curry were considered to play The Grinch.

Final film of Josh Ryan Evans.

Many of the Grinch's lines were ad-libbed by Jim Carrey.

When Cindy Lou is discussing how the aunts got the Grinch Clarnella says it was during one of their parties. You can see through the window that there is a lot of adult activity going on and at the very end the aunts are putting keys in a glass jar. This is a nod to a key party or swinger party. Obviously an adult only joke that kids would not get.

The soundstage for the Whoville set measured around thirty thousand square feet.

Jeffrey Tambor (Mayor of Whoville) appeared in the Brian Grazer production Arrested Development (2003), narrated by Ron Howard.

The Navy cap the Grinch wears when pretending to be a director with Max reads "W.S.S. Whoville WVN-70."

DIRECTOR CAMEO (Ron Howard): One of the startled Whos, while the Grinch rants in the city square.

The casting of Sir Anthony Hopkins as the narrator mirrors the casting of the horror genre great Boris Karloff in the original animated movie, in that Hopkins had a career revival in the Hannibal Lecter franchise.

This film was dedicated to Jean Speegle Howard who was Clint Howard and Ron Howard's mother who loved Christmas the most.

Mount Crumpit is three thousand feet high.

The Grinch's only real victim while he is stealing Christmas is a fluffy white cat that he accidentally sucked up with a vacuum while stealing presents from a house.

Despite the fact that their characters were in the same class as kids, Jim Carrey is considerably younger than the actors playing his former classmates. Christine Baranski (Martha May Whovier, the Grinch's love interest) is ten years older, and Jeffrey Tambor (Mayor MayWho, the Grinch's arch rival) is eighteen years older.

Cindy Lou Who and the children in the Grinch's class don't have the same nose as the adult Whos. It is mentioned later by Mayor MayWho that Who children eventually "grow into" their noses.

CASTLE THUNDER: Heard when the rocket-sleigh turns on for the first time.

Despite living with the Grinch, Max has a lot of Christmas spirit. Max is shown secretly dancing to Christmas music while the Grinch is away.

Taylor Momsen (Cindy Lou Who) became one of the leading rock singers and songwriters of the 2010s, fronting the band "The Pretty Reckless".

By virtue of a sad backstory, the movie makes the Grinch a more sympathetic character than he was in the book, or the Chuck Jones special.

The movie was originally going to be shot on a greenscreen stage, with CGI sets added in post-production.

The song which is played over the credits, Where are you Christmas, was written by Mariah Carey. It was performed by Faith Hill.

Mount Crumpit and Whoville are based on two real-life locations, just north of Dr. Suess' hometown of Springfield, Massachusetts. Mount Crumpit is based on Mount Tom, a one thousand two hundred two-foot peak, that overlooks the town of Easthampton, just as the Grinch's mountain overlooks Whoville.

The same song plays during the Christmas sack race as in another Jim Carrey film, Bruce Almighty, when he does the report about the largest cookie and says "cue the cheesy music".

When the Grinch is hating The Who's alphabetically, there is a telescope in the background with a fake green leg. The log has lace on it, similar to the leg lamp in A Christmas Story.

LOGO GIMMICK: There is snow falling on the ground in the "Imagine Entertainment" logo.

Due to the time-consuming nature of applying Jim Carrey's Grinch makeup, he arranged to have packages delivered to his dressing room instead of his actual home.

When the Grinch (Jim Carrey) is trying to drown out the noise of the Whos singing, he hits his head, right before using the giant monkey bashing the cymbals, and he says, "Owie!" He says the same thing, in the same tone, as he says it in Liar Liar (1997), when he bangs his head against the bathroom wall while standing at the urinal, trying to think of a way to get the case postponed. In fact Liar Liar (1997) was released and also made by Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment.

Tim Burton's adaptation would've been darker, and the Grinch would've been a more despicable character.

Martha May Who's nose appears to be sculpted to look more human, giving her a more attractive appearance when compared to the other Who women

The words "Grinch" and "Christmas" are spoken by every major character in the movie, except Max.

When Cindy Lou goes to visit the aunts Clarnella and Rose there is a map of Whoville to Mt Crumpit. This is taken directly from the original book by Dr Seuss.

Jim Carrey and Brian Grazer's second film project after Liar Liar (1997)

Max appears to understand the English language by being able to obey specific commands by the Grinch, like what size wrench to bring him.

The American Humane Association monitored the animal action. No animals were harmed. Scenes appearing to place animals in jeopardy were simulated.

After The Grinch exclaims that his heart is down a size and a half, he says "This time I'll keep it off." This could suggest that The Grinch has to actively work at being mean. You see him struggle with the positive side of his Whomanity throughout the film, reinforcing the possibility that mean isn't his natural state of being.

This movie was available at the 5-7 age group at the kids movie section in iTunes. After the release of The Grinch (2018) with more gained kid-friendly material, it is transferred to the 8-10 age group at the kids section in iTunes as the contents in this movie are considered slightly diverse.

The Grinch's dog, Max, has the same name as Jim Carrey's son in Liar Liar (1997) which is another movie which was released by Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment.

The Grinch has sharp fingernails that can dent cars, and cut through thick glass.

The longer theatrical trailer narrated by Percy Rodrigues.

Jim Carrey was one of the very few actors to play 2 Christmas hating characters as he went on to play Scrooge in Disney's A Christmas Carol 9 years later. Like the Grinch Scrooge repents and becomes the opposite of what he was for much of the film.

The Grinch has two similarities to Jim Carrey's character Stanley Ipkiss (the Mask) in The Mask (1994). The Grinch and the Mask are green in appearance (although the Mask is only green in the face), and the Grinch and Stanley have dogs, named Max and Milo, respectively.

Jim Carrey and Sir Anthony Hopkins were both involved in comic books. Carrey played the Riddler in Batman Forever (1995) while narrator Anthony Hopkins went on a few years later to play Odin, Thor's father in Thor (2011), Thor: The Dark World (2013), and Thor: Ragnarok (2017) and Dr. Edward Bailey in RED 2 (2013).

As the Grinch is falling down the tube to attend the Christmas party he shouts out, "Maybe I should have flipped a coin." Jim Carrey played the Riddler, opposite of Tommy Lee Jones' Two-Face in Batman Forever. Two-Face's signature move was to "flip a coin" before deciding on things (usually the fate of his victims).

There is a scene where Jim Carrey as The Grinch drives a very tiny car. This mimics a very similar scene that Jim acted out as the character Fire Marshall Bill on a Christmas-themed sketch from the TV show In Living Color, also driving a very tiny car with the same posture.

Gavin Grazer: The yodeller who gets nabbed, and clothes stolen by the Grinch.

Rance Howard: An old timekeeper who gets his liquor taken by the Grinch, who uses it to burn the town's giant Christmas tree.

Jeremy Howard: Drew Lou Who, one of the children of Lou and Betty Lou Who.

Clayton Martinez: A cook Who during the Cheermister celebration.

John Alexander: One of the shopping Whos during the opening scene.

Ron Howard's family showed up in several spots in the movie: his father, Rance Howard, was the Elderly Timekeeper Who that shouted "Put him in the Chair of Cheer!" His daughter, Bryce Dallas Howard, showed up as the young redheaded Who in the quick shot after the Grinch turned the lights in Whoville back on. His wife, Cheryl Howard, can be seen holding hands with the Elder Who when all the Whos gather around the tree, and his brother, Clint Howard, played Whobris, the Mayor's assistant. Another "Howard," Jeremy, appears as Dru LouWho, although he is of no relation to the other Howards involved with the film.

When The Grinch first arrives to Whoville as a baby, he looks through the window at a party. Some Whos are seen dropping keys in a bowl. This is a swinger party tradition. An adult theme that ultimately stayed in the movie.

The real Santa Claus is shown for a total of five seconds in the film. The Grinch and Max are only ones who see him, since all of the Whos are asleep.

The word "Grinch" is said sixty-seven times.

When the Grinch's heart begins to grow, it hurts his chest and he falls to the ground and wounds his hand. He turns back and forth between his two injuries, mimicking a similar gag from Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls (1995) in which Ace takes a spear to each leg.

The Grinch doesn't conjure up the idea to steal Christmas until an hour into the film.

Jim Carrey (The Grinch) played another Christmas-hating character, Ebenezer Scrooge, in Disney's A Christmas Carol (2009). Happily, both characters become kind and generous at the end of their respective films.