With few Chinese immigrants in Spain, the studio widened its search to "Asian-looking" adults; however, even with these dubious standards, only around 300 suitable extras were found for "55 Days at Peking." Eventually, the remaining 1,200 Chinese extras required by the script ended up being discovered and flown in from countries like Great Britain, Italy, France, and Portugal, according to the Flying-Dutchman.
But it wasn't just finding extras that proved to be a problem — the position of director proved difficult to fill. The original director of the film was Nicholas Ray of "Rebel Without a Cause" fame. However, Ray collapsed and suffered a heart attack halfway through filming, per Slant Magazine. Though Ray's substance abuse likely played a role, it was rumored that the strain of dealing with the cursed "55 Days at Peking" production had played a part. In fact, some Hollywood insiders claimed the heart attack was coupled with a nervous breakdown and Ray had consistently "not [showed] up" to work, per The A.V. Club.
Whatever the truth, Ray was replaced — by both Guy Green and then by Andrew Marten (via IMDb). With consistently shifting crew members, filming was never going to be easy. However, few could have predicted that a woman once considered the ultimate Hollywood icon would prove to be an even bigger obstacle.
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