In an interview given in 1993, Fay Wray expressed disappointment over this film. She recalled that she felt the script was substandard and a bit too unrealistic. She was surprised to learn from the interviewer that screenwriters Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur had likely pawned the script off on one or more subordinates before the script was finished.
Final film of Ullrich Haupt. The film was released just over two months after Haupt's untimely death. After finishing his work on the film, the actor retired to Figueroa Mountain, California for a vacation and hunting trip. He was killed when a shotgun his chauffeur was unloading accidentally discharged. The chauffeur and Haupt's two sons desperately sought medical aid for the actor, but he had expired by the time the three men returned to his side with a doctor.
According to numerous sources, both contemporary and modern, credited screenwriters Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur provided some elements of the script, but passed the job on to one or more anonymous subordinates once they were tasked with writing the screenplay for Scarface (1932). It has been speculated that John Lee Mahin the author, or one of the authors, who picked up the slack for Hecht and MacArthur, but his contributions to this film cannot be confirmed with certainty.
Preview screenings of the film met with very disappointing audience reviews. As a result, director George Fitzmaurice put the picture back in production and re-shot a significant amount of the scenes. It has been suggested that many of the principle crew members, including the cinematographer and screenwriters, passed their duties on to different professionals at this point.
This was the first and only time in which Ronald Colman and Fay Wray appeared together in the same film. Wray recounted that her experience alongside Colman was a pleasant one and that the two interacted quite well together.