Trivia / 12 Angry Men

• Acclaimed Flop: Universally praised by critics, but it barely made up its budget in box office returns, with a meager $1,000,000 in rentals (against a $340,000 budget) to show for it.
• Actor-Shared Background: Juror #11, the European immigrant, has a speech about how America is supposed to be a country where you can say what you like without fear. His actor, George Voskovec, was born in Czechoslovakia and worked in radical theatre there before coming to the USA in 1939. In 1950, seven years before this film was made, he'd been detained in Ellis Island on suspicion of being a communist. Arguably also an example of Irony as She Is Cast, then.
• Breakthrough Hit: For Sidney Lumet.
• Completely Different Title:
  • In Germany, the film was released as Die zwölf Geschworenen - "The Twelve Jurors".
  • In Italy, the film was released as La Parola Ai Giurati, meaning approximately, "Let's Hear The Jury Members"
  • In Spain the movie was released as 12 Hombres Sin Piedad - "12 Merciless Men".
  • In Sweden the film was released as "12 edsvurna män", meaning approximately "12 Men Under Oath".^note Under juror's oath that is, as they are jurors.
  • In Finland the film was released as "Valamiesten ratkaisu", meaning "The Jurors Decision".
• Creator's Favorite Episode: This was one of Henry Fonda's favourite films of his own.
• Doing It for the Art: Henry Fonda and Sidney Lumet both deferred their salaries for the film.
• Missing Episode: In Poland, the film was dubbed twice: in 1959 for cinematic release and in 1973 for television broadcast. In 1989 it turned out that last 30 minutes from TV dub have been lost. Dubbing director of this version was asked to make next, third in all, dub. She refused, volunteering to recreate missing material with surviving actors (and replacement for the one that already died) instead. As of 2022, only TV dub with scenes redubbed in 1989 is floating online, with cinematic dub and original version of TV dub being still considered lost.
• Role Reprise: Two of the cast members in the 1957 film — Joseph Sweeney (#9) and George Voskovec (#11) — are the originators of the parts, having played them in the 1954 television version.
• Swan Song: The partial Polish 1989 redub of the 1957 film turned out to be the last dub Szczepan Baczyński (who voiced Juror #9 in TV dub) participated. During his walk home after he finished recording all his lines, he was hit by a car and died.
• What Could Have Been: Edward Arnold was to be the other cast member to reprise his role (Juror #10) from the 1954 teleplay, but he died of a heart attack before production began, and replaced by Ed Begley.

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