Demolition Man contains several references to the novel "Brave New World" by Aldous Huxley. Sandra Bullock's character's name is Lenina Huxley, from Lenina Crowne, a main character in the book, and the author's name. Sylvester Stallone's character is also named for a character in Brave New World, John the Savage.

After Simon Phoenix kills Warden William Smithers, Huxley tells the computer to display a list of parole hearings for the day. One of the names that is stated and printed on the screen is Peterson, Scott. This movie was made about eight years before Scott Peterson killed his wife Lacy and their unborn son Conner. Submitted by Robert Sullinger

Lenina's line that she learned her kung-fu moves from watching Jackie Chan movies is possibly a reference to the fact that Chan was offered the role of Simon Phoenix but passed due to his policy of not playing villains.

In some versions, all references to Taco Bell are changed to Pizza Hut.

The 'particle gun' that Phoenix picks up in the museum is actually a prototype of the real-life Heckler&Koch G11 rifle, the first gun ever to fire caseless ammunition. The gun and its ammo were developed in the Cold War to save the expenses for the cartridge case production. It was tested and modified for field use, but with the collapse of the Soviet state (which ended the Cold War) in 1991, the production program was cancelled.

Toward the end of the film, as Phoenix is freeing the rest of the convicts in the cryoprison, he rejoices with glee when he notices one of the people on the list is Jeffrey Dahmer. Jeffrey Dahmer was bludgeoned to death in 1994, one year after this movie was released. In addition, he was never incarcerated in California. Both of the prisons he was incarcerated in are in Wisconsin, where his crimes were committed.