Anderson stated in an interview with IndieWire that freedom of speech was not guaranteed, but a concept requiring discussion and monitoring so it is not lost. He classified the word "fuck" as being at the core of discussion about freedom of speech. He acknowledged that there are terms considered by society more vulgar than "fuck", but said that this particular word creates controversy and dialogue. Anderson said that its title alone distinguished his documentary from others, in terms of promotional difficulty. During production, "Fuck" was known as "The Untitled F-Word Film".