50 Fun Facts About The Proposal

What nationality is Margaret Tate, which puts her at risk of deportation?

A visa violation threatens to send her home, so she strong-arms her assistant into a green-card marriage.

What is Margaret's job?

Her subordinates universally dislike her pushy personality, and the board plans to rehire fired editor Bob Spaulding if she goes.

Who directed The Proposal?

The former Laker Girl and choreographer had directed Step Up and 27 Dresses; she went on to Hocus Pocus 2.

Who wrote the screenplay, beginning work on it in 2005?

Sandra Bullock was cast in May 2007 and Ryan Reynolds about two months later; the director signed on in January 2008.

What is the name of Ryan Reynolds's character?

His ultimate career goal is to become an editor, and he makes Margaret promise to publish a book he recommended.

What penalty does immigration agent Gilbertson warn Andrew he could face for fraud?

Margaret, meanwhile, would be deported permanently. Denis O'Hare plays the suspicious agent.

Andrew's hometown, where most of the film takes place, is where?

The town's real-life history includes 68 years under Russian rule; it is the largest US city by total area.

What surprises Margaret about Andrew's family when she arrives?

Joe Paxton owns the family businesses that dominate the town.

Who plays Andrew's grandmother Annie, known as Gammy?

The role sparked her late-career resurgence; she hosted Saturday Night Live the next year and won an Emmy for it.

Who plays Andrew's father, Joe Paxton?

The Coach star and voice of Mr. Incredible plays the man whose businesses dominate Sitka.

Who plays Andrew's mother, Grace?

She won an Oscar for Melvin and Howard and has played movie mothers in Elf, Step Brothers and Four Christmases.

Sitka's jack-of-all-trades holds which of these jobs in the film?

Oscar Nuñez plays him; he ends up officiating the wedding.

Which sitcom made Oscar Nuñez famous?

He played accountant Oscar Martínez and was a member of the Groundlings; he was born in Colón, Cuba.

Who plays Andrew's ex-girlfriend Gertrude?

The Swedish-born actress played Silk Spectre II in Watchmen the same year and once fronted the band the Petalstones.

What does Gertrude reveal to Margaret at the bachelorette party?

She turned him down the night before college graduation because she did not want to leave Sitka for New York.

What do Grace and Annie arrange for Margaret's bachelorette party?

It is one of several jobs held by the town's busiest resident.

What does Margaret confess to Andrew about her past?

She says she has forgotten what it feels like to have a family.

What deal does Gilbertson offer the couple after Joe flies him to Sitka?

Margaret confesses on her own at the altar anyway, moved by the closeness of Andrew's family.

Who officiates the wedding?

The ceremony starts normally until Margaret stops it and tells everyone the truth.

How much time does Gilbertson give Margaret to leave for Canada after she confesses?

She heads back to the house to pack while Andrew and his father argue yet again.

What does Gammy Annie fake to force Andrew and Joe to reconcile?

Once they agree, she admits the ruse and tells the pilot to divert to catch Margaret's plane, which takes off just as they arrive.

Where does Andrew finally declare his feelings for Margaret?

They then tell Gilbertson they are engaged for real, and he exclaims 'Let's do it!'

What happens during the end credits?

Margaret, Andrew, his parents and the town's minister all get grilled.

In which Massachusetts town did filming begin on April 2, 2008?

Part of the Cape Ann town was remodeled to pass for Sitka, and the famous red fishing shack Motif Number One appears.

Filming later moved for about two weeks to which other Massachusetts town?

Other scenes were shot in Boston's State Street Bank Building and in Lower Manhattan.

Why was filming briefly delayed?

The wedding scene was shot in a three-story Victorian home over three weeks; the owners recalled the production designer knocking to ask for leaves.

What did producers give Bullock and Reynolds for their nude scene, according to Bullock?

She told Sky News that everyone acting like it was a normal day helped her relax.

Who composed the score?

He recorded it with the Hollywood Studio Symphony at the Sony Scoring Stage.

What was the film's production budget?

It grossed over $317 million worldwide, ranking 21st among 2009 releases.

Which films did The Proposal beat on its opening weekend in June 2009?

It took over $34 million, nearly doubling Bullock's previous best opening.

The Proposal nearly doubled which of Sandra Bullock's earlier films, previously her biggest opening?

Disney's exit poll found 63 percent of the opening audience was female and 71 percent were couples.

How many DVD units did the film sell in its first week?

By July 2013 it had sold more than 5.6 million units and earned over $90 million in home sales.

What is the film's Rotten Tomatoes approval rating?

The consensus: Bullock and Reynolds have plenty of chemistry but are let down by the film's devotion to formula.

How many stars out of four did Roger Ebert give the film?

He said it recycled a plot old when Tracy and Hepburn were doing it, but the performances won him over.

For which award was the film's leading lady nominated for The Proposal?

The same year she won an Oscar for a football drama and a Razzie for All About Steve.

Which other 2009 film brought the star of The Proposal her Academy Award for Best Actress?

She played Leigh Anne Tuohy. Gravity later brought a second nomination.

The Malayalam remake of The Proposal was titled what?

Software Ganda is the Kannada version, To va Man the Iranian one, and a Chinese remake was announced in 2016.

Which two production companies made the film alongside Kurtzman/Orci Productions?

It was distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

The film's director started out as what before directing?

She was assistant to Adam Shankman and appeared as a dancer in The Mask, Casper and Titanic.

Which city is Ryan Reynolds from?

He began acting at 13 and starred in the sitcom Two Guys and a Girl before his film career took off.

Denis O'Hare, who plays Gilbertson, won a Tony for which play?

His baseball-loving monologues were credited for the win. He later played vampire king Russell Edgington on True Blood.

Sitka, the film's setting, was under the rule of which country until 1867?

Russians named it New Archangel. It sits on Baranof Island and is the largest US city by total area.

Which actress was originally approached for the lead role before Sandra Bullock?

Bullock's casting was announced in May 2007, with Ryan Reynolds finalised about two months later.

Roughly how many special-effects shots does The Proposal contain?

Some were finished with computer-generated imagery, unusual for a romantic comedy set largely in a small Alaskan town.

How long did photography for the wedding scene last inside a Victorian family home?

Production designer Nelson Coates found the house after knocking on the door to ask for leaves; production took over the first floor.

Which Boston landmark served as a filming location outside the Cape Ann area?

Scenes were also shot in Lower Manhattan, while Rockport was remodelled to pass for Sitka, Alaska.

Where did The Proposal hold its premiere on June 1, 2009?

Theatrical release followed on June 19, when it opened at number one ahead of Year One, Up and The Hangover.

In which country did the film's opening weekend account for 34% of all box-office revenue?

It took over $2.6 million there; in South Africa it opened second behind Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs.

Which Shakespeare play did the Los Angeles Times compare the leads' relationship to?

Betsey Sharkey called it a 'cheeky update', praising Bullock's physical comedy and Reynolds's 'surgical precision' with a line.

What is the title of the 2014 Kannada remake of The Proposal?

My Boss was the Malayalam version, Sandakkari the delayed Tamil one and To va Man the 2011 Iranian remake.