This marked the first time a real photographic image of a person's head (in this case David Hasselhoff) was superimposed over a cartoon body, a practice which would become common throughout the series. Trey Parker said the technology was not previously available in the earliest episodes of the series. Comedy Central was required to pay royalties to the photographer of the picture used for Hasselhoff's head, but was not required to pay Hasselhoff himself.
Following the success of Mr. Hankey, the Christmas Poo (1997), a large number of celebrities started contacting Comedy Central with the hopes of making guest appearances in the series, allowing Trey Parker and Matt Stone to practically take their pick of guest stars. Parker asked for Natasha Henstridge solely because he found her attractive in Species (1995).
The idea of Ms. Ellen taking one of the children to dinner came from Trey Parker's real-life experiences. At his school, the children were able to have lunch with the teacher and principal if they were awarded "Student of the Week". Parker said he went on one of the lunches once and found the experience "really, really creepy" because he had the impression the teacher and principal were having a romantic affair.
During one scene, Wendy tells Stan that she smelled Ms. Ellen taking a "smelly dump" in the bathroom in an attempt to make him less attracted to her. In the original script, Wendy originally told Stan that she had a yeast infection, but Comedy Central censors made Trey Parker and Matt Stone change the line. Parker and Stone said although the network typically provides great leniency in permitting obscene jokes, they often object to lines about women's hygiene problems.
Natasha Henstridge was nervous performing her role because she had never conducted a voice over performance before.