According to scriptwriter Winston Miller, there was a scene where Charlton Heston is coming down the river and comes across a body on a sand spit with "so many arrows in him he looked like a pin cushion." When Heston uttered the line, "He's dead," the audience found it laughable and the scene changed their acceptance of the film's credibility. The scene had to be re-edited with Heston's line deleted.
The lead roles were originally offered to Gary Cooper and John Wayne, but Cooper vehemently rejected the offer.
Touissant Charboneau and Sacajawea had a child while at Fort Mandan. Born 11 February 1805, Jean Baptiste Charboneau continued the family business as a guide for a battalion of the Army of the West during the Mexican War of 1846-7.
Although spelled Sacajawea in the film, it is believed that her name may have also been spelled Sakakawea but the most accurate spelling of her name was thought to be Sacagawea.
Re-released in black and white, not color.