New Line Cinema originally greenlit the project wanting a "teenage Fatal Attraction ," but Katt Shea steered it into more personal and idiosyncratic territory.

The story was partially inspired by a real-life experience of producer Melissa Goddard , where a childhood friend allegedly tried to seduce her father.

Ivy's style—leather jackets, nose rings, and varying shades of red—remains a reference point for '90s "grunge-femme" aesthetics.