Will Shortz - puzzle editor of The New York Times and NPR's Sunday morning puzzle-master - was among the writers and executive producers of this movie. He also made an uncredited appearance as a table tennis player, coming up to the main characters outdoors and asking to have his ping pong ball returned.
The fifth collaboration between Lacey Chabert and Brennan Elliott after A Christmas Melody (2015) and the All of My Heart (2015) trilogy.
The crossword tournament is played in a fancy New York hotel and exterior shots imply it is The Plaza. Victor A. Young, who played Pierre in this movie, was the owner/manager of The Plaza in Eloise at the Plaza (2003) and Victor A. Young.