Olivia de Havilland rejected this project and was put on suspension by Warner Bros. for the fifth time in three years. She would soon file a lawsuit against the studio that would eventually result in the De Havilland Law (California Labor Code Section 2855).
The Philip Barry-penned Broadway play "The Animal Kingdom", upon which this film is based, opened at the Broadhurst Theatre, 235 W. 44th St. on January 12, 1932 and ran for 183 performances until June, 1932.
Filmed between early April and early June of 1943, with shooting recommencing between mid-October and early November, this movie finally premiered on May 24, 1946 at the Strand Theatre in Manhattan. Allegedly, the picture had not received a quicker release due to Warner Bros.' lack of confidence in the box office potential. However, according to the AFI Catalog entry for this film, no reason for the unusual delay has been discovered in studio records or in the contemporary entertainment press.
This film's working title was The Animal Kingdom. According to a contemporary article in The Hollywood Reporter, Bette Davis and Paul Henreid were to star in this film.