STORY BEHIND THE MOVIE
What’s the story behind Napoleon Dynamite? – A
Jon Heder was initially paid just $1,000 to play the awkward, frizzy-haired titular teenager. In fact, the entire movie cost just $400,000 to produce, with director Jared Hess casting several of his friends. Heder was able to re-negotiate his fee after the comedy became a surprise hit in 2004. Napoleon Dynamite was adapted from Peluca, a nine-minute film also starring Heder which Hess had made for his university class.