20 Things You Didn't Know About Speed
17. Dennis Hopper Never Really Could Get Away From Blue Velvet
When casting the villain, a disgruntled former cop screwed out of his pension, the studios were pushing hard for a big name or at least a big twist. The initial script called for Daniel's Harry Temple to turn out to be behind everything, but that was quickly abandoned.
De Bont had his heart set on Hopper, who he felt could pull off the role without coming off like a complete sociopath - just an innocent victim of circumstance and bureaucracy pushed just a little over the edge.
Apparently, De Bont missed what was one of Hopper's defining roles at the time - the out-of-whack, oxygen-inhaling, sexually abusive lunatic who insisted on being called "daddy" during creepy, disturbing near-rape sessions. Many a youtube compilation of the expletive-laden Frank from Blue Velvet can be found online, and he carried that same frenetic energy to Speed.
It's unclear whether the line, "Don't f*** with Daddy!" was scripted or improvised, but it was certainly drawing on Hopper's eccentricity.