First Steps, much of the discussion was centered around culture war issues. Chief among them was the movie’s decision to make the Silver Surfer a woman when people are used to the Surfer being a man.

As the filmmaker’s three-year journey wound down on the project, he realized a key moment was missing, and managed to shoot it within a few months of the film's opening.

Shalla-Bal was the Zenn-Lavian royal heir and romantic partner of a brilliant scientist from the utopian planet of Zenn-La named Norris Radd, who became the herald of Galactus known as the Silver Surfer.