Writer Simon Donald consulted a parasitologist while developing the show's central parasite concept, basing it on ichneumon wasps, which lay their eggs inside living hosts.

The fictional Arctic settlement of Fortitude, supposedly located in Svalbard, Norway, was actually filmed in both the United Kingdom and Reyðarfjörður, Iceland.

Fortitude marked American actor Stanley Tucci's first British television role, in which he plays a Metropolitan Police detective sent to investigate a murder.

Sofie Gråbøl, known for The Killing, took on her first UK television drama role in Fortitude, playing Hildur Odegard, the governor of Fortitude.

The first season was well received, holding an 86% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes (average score 7.4/10) and a Metascore of 75, indicating generally favorable reviews.

When Indonesian channel FX aired the series in February 2017, its violent content led local authorities to ban the channel from broadcasting for several days in April 2017.

The series was dubbed and broadcast internationally in multiple languages, including Farsi (on Manoto) and Polish (on Ale Kino+ HD for season 3), alongside its original English airing in the US, Canada, and Australia.