Part of the BRD Trilogy along with The Marriage of Maria Braun (1979) and Lola (1981). "BRD" stands for Bundesrepublik Deutschland, the official name of West Germany and of the united contemporary Germany, period in which those three stories takes place. The films are connected in a thematic rather than in a narrative sense. All three deal with different characters (though some actors recur in different roles) and plot lines, but each one focuses on the story of a specific woman in West Germany after World War II.
According to Roger Ebert, "many critics look at Veronika Voss and are reminded of Gloria Swanson in Billy Wilder's "Sunset Boulevard." Perhaps the association is intentional. When Veronika finally, with great difficulty, wheedles a bit part from her former agent, the director of the scene (Volker Spengler) wears glasses and has his hat pushed back on his head, Wilder-style."
R. W. Fassbinder has a cameo role in the beginning of the film sitting behind Veronika Voss in a movie theatre and watching her old movie.
Is the penultimate film of R. W. Fassbinder's career (preceding Querelle) and the last film released during his lifetime.