Patrick Warburton improvised when Kronk hummed his own theme song when he was carrying Kuzco (David Spade) in the bag to the waterfall. Disney's legal department had Warburton sign all rights to the humming composition over to them.
Pacha's (John Goodman's) wife, Chicha (Wendie Malick), is pregnant. According to the DVD commentary, this is the first Disney animated feature to show a pregnant woman. And one of the first human mothers not to be villainized or killed.
Kuzco was named after the ancient capital of the Incas, Cuzco. The city still exists in the Andes mountains in southern Peru, at an elevation of 11,200 feet (3,200 meters).
Three of the animals that Kuzco turns into (llama, parrot, whale) are seen as toys in the scene when he was a baby.
Pacha's name means "Earth" in the Incan language. This could refer to his round shape, his green poncho, and/or his down-to-earth personality.