Stories from the set

David Niven's (1910-1983) screen time in the film was 23 minutes and 39 seconds. This is the shortest time for which an actor received an Oscar in the Best Actor category, and the 4th on the list of screen times that earned an Oscar for Best Actor. Anthony Hopkins, who received an Oscar for his role in Jonathan Demme's (1944-2017) The Silence of the Lambs (1991), was on screen for 24 minutes and 52 seconds.

The role of John Malcolm was originally intended for Spencer Tracy (1900-1967), as indeed the film's director Laurence Olivier (1907-1989) expected. When producer Bert Lancaster (1913-1994) decided to play the role himself, Olivier issued him an ultimatum: either Tracy plays the role, or Olivier and Vivien Leigh (1913-1967) leave the project. Lancaster insisted on his way and Olivier was fired.