History Trivia / InvasionOfTheBodySnatchers1956

* UncreditedRole: Whit Bissell and Richard Deacon as Drs. Hill and Bassett, to whom Miles is relating his story in the film's FramingDevice.

* WorkingTitle: The film was almost called ''The Body Snatchers'' after Jack Finney's serial, but this was rejected as sounding too similar to the Creator/ValLewton film ''Film/TheBodySnatcher'' (1945). After such other prospective titles as ''They Come from Another World'', ''Better Off Dead'', ''Sleep No More'', ''Evil in the Night'', and ''World in Danger'', the studio finally settled on ''Invasion of the Body Snatchers''.

* WorkingTitle: The film was almost called ''The Body Snatchers'' after Jack Finney's serial, but this was rejected as sounding too similar to the Creator/ValLewton film ''Film/TheBodySnatcher'' (1945). After such other prospective titles as ''They Come from Another World'', ''Better off Dead'', ''Sleep No More'', ''Evil in the Night'', and ''World in Danger'', the studio finally settled on ''Invasion of the Body Snatchers''.

** Wanger wanted a UsefulNotes/WinstonChurchill quotation as a preface, with Creator/OrsonWelles doing the narration. When they couldn't persuade Welles, Wanger tried to enlist Creator/RayBradbury, who declined as well.
** Walter Wanger considered Creator/GigYoung, Creator/DickPowell, Creator/JosephCotten, and several others for the role of Miles. For Becky, he considered Creator/AnneBancroft, Creator/DonnaReed, Creator/VeraMiles, and others.

** Wanger wanted a UsefulNotes/WinstonChurchill quotation as a preface, with Creator/OrsonWelles doing the narration. When they couldn't persuade Welles, Wanger tried to enlist Creator/RayBradbury. He declined as well.

* RealitySubtext: Screenwriter Daniel Mainwaring had brushes with "Red Scare" witch-hunts during UsefulNotes/TheHollywoodBlacklist era, which lends credence to the theory that the film is subtle a statement against [=McCarthyism=]. Dana Wynter agreed with that sentiment, although she didn't recall mention of any political statements on-set. Kevin [=McCarthy=] believed the film to be an attack on "Madison Avenue" attitudes. Director Don Siegel joked that the pods represented [[BitingTheHandHumor movie industry executives]].

** Walter Wanger considered Creator/GigYoung, Creator/DickPowell, Creator/JosephCotten, and several others for the role of Miles. For Becky, he considered Creator/AnneBancroft, Creator/DonnaReed, Creator/VeraMiles and others.

** Initially, Walter Wanger considered Creator/GigYoung, Creator/DickPowell, Creator/JosephCotten, and several others for the role of Miles. For Becky, he considered casting Creator/AnneBancroft, Creator/DonnaReed, Creator/VeraMiles and others.
* WorkingTitle: The film was almost called ''The Body Snatchers'' after Jack Finney's serial, but it sounded too similar to the Val Lewton film ''The Body Snatcher'' (1945). After several such titles as ''They Come from Another World'', ''Better off Dead'', ''Sleep No More'', ''Evil in the Night'' and ''World in Danger'', the studio finally settled on ''Invasion of the Body Snatchers''.

* RealitySubtext: Screenwriter Daniel Mainwaring had brushes with "Red Scare" witch-hunts during UsefulNotes/TheHollywoodBlacklist era, which lends credence to the theory that the film is subtle a statement against [=McCarthyism=]. Dana Wynter agreed with that sentiment, although she didn't recall mention of any political statements on-set. Kevin [=McCarthy=] believed the film to be an attack on "Madison Avenue" attitudes. Director Don Siegel joked that the pods represented movie industry executives.

* OneTakeWonder: With such a low budget and lack of filming schedule, every scene had to be shot correctly on the first take.

* RealitySubtext: Screenwriter Daniel Mainwaring had brushes with "Red Scare" witch-hunts during UsefulNotes/TheHollywoodBlacklist, era which lends credence to the theory that the film is subtle a statement against [=McCarthyism=]. Dana Wynter agreed with that sentiment, although she didn't recall mention of any political statements on-set. Kevin [=McCarthy=] believed the film to be an attack on "Madison Avenue" attitudes. Director Don Siegel joked that the pods represented movie industry executives.

* RealitySubtext: Screenwriter Daniel Mainwaring had brushes with "Red Scare" witch-hunts during UsefulNotes/TheHollywoodBlacklist, era which lends credence to the theory that the film is subtle a statement against [=McCarthyism=]. Dana Wynter agreed with that sentiment, although she didn't recall the mention of any political statements on-set. Kevin [=McCarthy=] believed the film to be an attack on "Madison Avenue" attitudes. Director Don Siegel joked that the pods represented movie industry executives.

* RealitySubtext: Screenwriter Daniel Mainwaring had brushes with Hollywood "Red Scare" witch-hunts, which lends credence to the theory that the film is subtle statement against [=McCarthyism=]. Dana Wynter agreed with that sentiment, although she didn't recall the mention of any political statements on-set. Kevin [=McCarthy=] believed the film to be an attack on "Madison Avenue" attitudes. Director Don Siegel joked that the pods represented movie industry executives.

* TechnologyMarchesOn: It's TheFifties, so Miles has to go through the operator to try to make long-distance calls....

* ExecutiveMeddling: The film ends with the authorities having the truth of what Miles has told them confirmed, because the studio thought the original ending was too dark.

* ExecutiveMeddling: The film ends with the cops catching the snatchers in the act, because the studio thought the original ending was too dark.

* UsefulNotes/AFIS100YearsSeries:
** AFIS100Years100Thrills: #47
** AFIS10Top10:
*** #9, Science Fiction

* AFIS100YearsSeries:

* AFIS100Years100Thrills: #47
* AFIS10Top10:
** #9, Science Fiction

* WhatCouldHaveBeen: The film originally ended with the hero, Miles Bennell, on the highway screaming "You're next! You're next!" to all the passing motorists, leaving the audience on a cliffhanger, but the studio disliked this ending so it was changed to a more hopeful ending.

* UncreditedRole: Drs. Hill (Whit Bissell) and Bassett (Richard Deacon), to whom Miles is relating his story in the film's FramingDevice.

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* FakeAmerican: English actress Dana Wynter plays Becky Driscoll, and [[OohMeAccentsSlipping her native accent keeps popping out]]. They get around it in the script by saying the character had just returned to the U.S. after having lived in England for several years.

* FakeAmerican: English actress Dana Wynter plays Becky Driscoll, and [[OohMeAccentsSlipping her native accent keeps popping out]]. They got around it in the script by saying the character had just returned to the U.S. after having lived in England for several years.

* FakeAmerican: English actress Dana Wynter plays Becky Driscoll in the original, and [[OohMeAccentsSlipping her native accent keeps popping out]]. They got around it in the script by saying the character had just returned to the U.S. after having lived in England for several years.

* HeyItsThatGuy: [[Series/TheDickVanDykeShow Mel Cooley]] is one of the mental hospital doctors in the prologue/epilogue.