Trivia / White Dog

• Absurdly Short Production Time: While pre-production dragged on for six years thanks to original director Roman Polański being charged with raping a minor, once filming commenced, it was completed in just 45 days to avoid potential strikes by writers and directors across Hollywood.
• Acclaimed Flop: The few critics that actually got to see the film generally praised it for its anti-racism message, but as mentioned below, Paramount pulled the film while it was only playing in a few markets (one week run in Detroit, a few test screenings in Seattle and Denver) due to accusations of it being racist, despite the film being against racism.
• Box Office Bomb: Budget, $7 million (estimated). Box office, $46,509. The film is noted for its especially Troubled Production, suffering from having its American release pulled courtesy of distributor Paramount because of accusations of being racist. The treatment of his film prompted Samuel Fuller to retreat to France (where his films were much better received) and never make another Hollywood film again. However, it was generally acclaimed by critics, and after it was finally released on DVD in 2008, the general public has repeatedly criticized Paramount for withholding its release, given that it teaches an important lesson on America's damning record of racism.
• Creator Cameo: Karl Lewis Miller, the film's dog trainer, plays Julie's attempted rapist.
• Executive Meddling: Although Paramount president Michael Eisner was fond of the film's anti-racism message and pushed for its production, the studio ultimately got cold feet due to increasing concerns from the NAACP that it would be misconstrued as white supremacist propaganda thanks to its portrayal of Black people being viciously mauled and its proximity to a series of anti-Black killings in Atlanta. Consequently, Paramount only screened the film at 5 theaters in Detroit for one week, provided no advertising, and ultimately wrote it off as a flop.
• Invisible Advertising: Paramount only gave the film a limited screening in Detroit for one week and opted not to provide any posters, trailers, or print ads to draw attention to it, owed to concerns from executives and the NAACP that the movie would inspire white supremacist violence. The film bombed as a result, and Paramount refrained from giving it a wider release on the grounds that it wouldn't sell.
• What Could Have Been: When Paramount purchased the rights to the original book in 1975, they hired Curtis Hanson as screenwriter and Roman Polański as director. However, Polanski fled the US at the last minute after being charged with raping a 13-year-old girl in 1977, putting the film on hold until 1981. Hanson would end up co-writing the final script with Samuel Fuller.

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