In the beginning of the movie, the logo for the fictional Mona Wassermann corporation is shown after the distribution and production company logos, which further emphasizes that, much like Beau's world, Mona is in control of this film.
Joaquin Phoenix had sharpened pins installed in his bandaged hand to poke him painfully if he used it. To also simulate the torso injuries he had paper binding clips clamped to his stomach to help facilitate a realistic limp.
The film was initially described by director and writer Ari Aster as a "4-hour-long nightmare comedy." The runtime of the theatrical cut runs just one minute shy of three hours.
On April 1, 2023, Ari Aster and A24 pulled what was characterized as an April Fools' Day prank on a movie audience at New York's Alamo Drafthouse. Though they had purchased tickets for a special showing of the director's cut of Aster's 2019 horror film Midsommar (2019), Aster, instead, screened an unannounced preview of "Beau Is Afraid", about a month before its actual opening date.
Ari Aster said that with the movie, he "[wanted] to put [the audience] in the experience of being a loser."