Trivia / Escape to Athena

• Acting for Two: Michael Sheard played Sgt. Mann and dubbed Vogel (Philip Locke).
• Deleted Scene: The American theatrical version removed a lot of the comedy in favor of emphasizing the action aspect of the film, resulting in the excision of nearly 20 minutes of footage. However, all home video releases use the British theatrical version, which includes all those missing comedy scenes.
• Fake Nationality:
  • The very-British Roger Moore plays a German Major. Several of his fellow Germans are also played by Brits.
  • Italian actress Claudia Cardinale plays a Greek madame.
• Hostility on the Set: According to stuntman Vic Armstrong, the crew hated the director so much they stole his hat and nailed it to a mast.
• Vacation, Dear Boy: David Niven agreed to be in the film because his son produced it and he liked the idea of returning to Rhodes, where he had made The Guns of Navarone.
• What Could Have Been:
  • Raquel Welch was offered the role of Dottie Del Mar.
  • O. J. Simpson was offered the role of Judson.
  • Peter Vaughan was offered the role of Sergeant Mann.
• Working Title: The Athena Crisis.

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