It has become a tradition in British Antarctic research stations to watch The Thing (1982) as part of their Midwinter feast and celebration held every June 21.
Kurt Russell took a drag on a cigarette at the beginning of certain shots in order to make the breath appear more visible.
Unused music composed for this film was later used by Ennio Morricone in Quentin Tarantino's The Hateful Eight (2015). Ironically, Morricone's Thing score was nominated for a Razzie for worst score, while his score for Hateful Eight won him an Oscar.
The film is considered a benchmark in special make-up effects. The effects were created by Rob Bottin, who was only 22 when he started the project.