Erin Brown's character is named Misty, which is a nod to the actress' alias for her erotic movie career, Misty Mundae.
The role of Ida Teeter, played by Angela Bettis, was a role originally written for a man with the character name of "Ira Teeter".
Likely inspired by the 1917 Uruguayan horror tale "The Feather Pillow" by Horacio Quiroga. In this tale, a woman falls victim to a vampire bug hidden inside her pillow. The bug drains her blood through her temple with its proboscis.