In 1992, Itami was attacked, beaten, and slashed by five members of the Goto-gumi, a Tokyo yakuza gang, who were angry at his portrayal of yakuza as bullies and thugs in this film. This attack led to a government crackdown on the yakuza. His subsequent stay in a hospital inspired his next film Daibyonin.
The bellboy's name Wakasugi means "too young" in Japanese. It's not a real name and implies he is too green to have enough experience to know what to do.