Synopsis

Scottish hairdresser Crawford Mackenzie travels from Glasgow to Los Angeles with a BBC documentary crew, believing he has been invited to compete in the World Freestyle Hairdressing Championship. On arrival, he discovers that he is expected only to watch. Refusing to accept the humiliation, Crawford schemes his way into the contest and pursues the coveted Platinum Scissors with relentless confidence.

Factoids & Trivia

• Craig Ferguson and Sacha Gervasi wrote the screenplay. The idea grew from Ferguson's wish to celebrate Scottish identity through a cheerful comedy, rather than the darker or more epic Scottish films popular in the 1990s.

• The film was shot on location in Glasgow and Los Angeles, giving its fish-out-of-water comedy a clear contrast between Crawford's hometown and the exaggerated world of Hollywood.

• Warner Bros. acquired the screenplay after a bidding war and was reportedly the only major studio ready to greenlight the project immediately.

• Production had to move quickly so Ferguson could make the film during a break from his television work on The Drew Carey Show.

• Ferguson spent time at a hairdressing institute to learn the techniques needed for Crawford's work. The elaborate hairpieces created for the Platinum Scissors finale were made from real human hair and reportedly weighed about four pounds each.

• The movie was promoted with the tagline "Rocky with Curlers," framing the hairdressing championship as an underdog sports story.

• The Big Tease premiered at the Chicago International Film Festival on October 15, 1999, before receiving a limited North American theatrical release in January 2000.

• The film became part of a brief cycle of comedies centered on competitive hairdressing. Its release preceded Blow Dry, another British film about a hairdressing contest, which was delayed until 2001.