The action sequence at the candy convention is based on every Bruce Willis movie ever made.
Homer mixing Pop-Rocks and Cola together to make a deadly explosion is based on an old urban legend.[1]
Homer's imagination of living underwater is a parody of the song "Under the Sea" from the Disney film The Little Mermaid. David Mirkin says he thought the sequence would be funny because Homer would eat all of the characters from the film.
The news coverage showing Homer knocked out in the bathroom with the shower curtain draped over him, and the voice-over saying he slept in an oxygen tent believing it would enhance his sexual powers, is a reference to widespread tabloid rumors saying that Michael Jackson slept in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber in an attempt to slow the aging process.
When Rock Bottom does a story on Groundskeeper Willie, the producers dub him "Rowdy Roddy Peeper," a reference to "Rowdy" Roddy Piper, the stage name of a professional wrestler who adopted a Scottish persona in the ring.
Trivia
Originally, the episode was supposed to center around Lisa and Homer arguing over how men and women get away with certain things in society ("the double standard"), but David Mirkin thought it would be funnier to make fun of how the media likes to sensationalize news stories in the name of ratings, as the O.J. Simpson murder trial was occurring around the same time as this episode's premiere.
First ever episode to be rated 12 in the United Kingdom due to moderate sexual references (including themes of sexual harassment and voyeurism).
This is the second time a Simpson had a movie based on a misunderstood incident involving them, the first one was Bart the Murderer.
One of Rock Bottom's corrections is "Janet Reno is evil." This may be a reference to Bart's Girlfriend, where the sign outside the church stated that she was an example of an evil woman.
Another correction is "Bart is bad to the bone." Bart described himself as "bad to the bone" in Bart's Girlfriend as well.
Homer's butt is visible in two scenes of this episode. Ironically, in both scenes Homer is embarrassed of his butt being visible due to other people being able to see him.
Goofs
Immediately after recalling finding the tickets to the candy convention, Homer's beard is colored yellow instead of its usual tan color.
When Homer says "Okay, don´t panic! She can't gone far! She has no arms!", Maggie's bow is missing.
The flag that Marge claims to have 49 stars really only has 38.
When Marge's coat pocket rips a huge pile of candy spills out but then in the next shot all the candy is gone.
Rock Bottom Corrections
After the revelation of Homer's innocence, Rock Bottom broadcasts a list of corrections to various claims the show has made. The list can only be read in freeze-frame or slow motion. Rock Bottom's corrections are as follows: