After filming wrapped, David Niven sued Paramount Pictures and producer David Merrick. Reportedly, this was Niven's first lawsuit in 46 years of working in the film industry. He sued for $1.8 million, claiming he was underpaid in salary and was owed $91,667 since he worked longer than the five weeks he was contracted for and was not billed correctly in the movie's advertising, thereby breaching his contract because an image of himself was not used in promotional material alongside co-stars Burt Reynolds and Lesley-Anne Down. The original American theatrical movie poster does not feature a photograph of Niven but the British poster did, released there later.
After a month of filming, director Don Siegel was fired by producer David Merrick because they had creative differences about the ending of the film. Peter R. Hunt replaced Siegel, but after about only a week Hunt was also sacked. Siegel was then re-hired. Hunt went to court and the settlement resulted in a pay-out by Merrick of a full director's salary for the picture, a reported $134,000.
Scriptwriter Larry Gelbart had his name removed from the film's credits and was billed under the pseudonym "Francis Burns", a reference to the character Frank Burns from M*A*S*H (1972), of which Gelbart was the producer and head writer.
This movie was originally intended to be directed by Blake Edwards who left the project and the film's development was postponed. Ironically, Edwards was also the original director of City Heat (1984) which Burt Reynolds also starred in but bowed out of the film after creative differences with Clint Eastwood. Edwards and Reynolds eventually worked together on The Man Who Loved Women (1983).
This movie had three directors: Don Siegel, Peter R. Hunt and Robert Ellis Miller, the latter two being uncredited. Hunt replaced Siegel, who in turn then replaced him after only a week, while Miller directed the re-shoots that constituted a fourth ending.
Roland Culver: At age 79 as Mr. Lloyd Palmer, the owner of the mansion where Burt Reynolds and Lesley-Anne Down meet for the first time.
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