Colm Feore took it upon himself to make friends with all the child actors, as he didn't want any of them to be genuinely scared of him.
The movie takes place on Little Tall Island off the coast of Maine, the same setting as Stephen King's Dolores Claiborne (1995). This is alluded to in the script.
The book Dolores Claiborne, whose title character is briefly mentioned, is also told in flashbacks as all but the final scenes of this is. In Stephen King's time line, the present sections of Dolores Claiborne take place after the flashback sections of this film meaning she is somewhere on the island during these events.
Stephen King: Does an ad on the smashed-in TV in Martha Clarendon's house for the litigation law firm of Macintosh & Redding (1-800-1-STIK-EM).