It is possible that Carroll Baker was selected to star in the production as a way for Warner Brothers to make peace with the Catholic Church in the United States and "rehabilitate" her reputation in the eyes of the Church. The Legion of Decency, a Catholic film review board, had denounced Baker's suggestive performance in Baby Doll four years earlier, placing that film on its "Condemned" list. Such a drastic classification had seldom been given to any domestic releases due to the strict enforcement of the Motion Picture Production Code in the film industry. Francis Cardinal Spellman, then archbishop of New York, had even gone so far as to threaten excommunication to any Catholic going to see Baby Doll. The film's poor box office reflected the Catholic boycott.
