This film is Karl Malden's only directing credit. In his autobiography, he stated that he "preferred being a good actor than a fairly good director."
Khigh Dhiegh (Colonel Kim) would again play a Korean communist brainwashing American soldiers five years later in El embajador del miedo (1962).
The outdoor scenes on an US Army post were shot on location at Fort Jay, then an active Army post located on Governors Island, New York in early May 1957. The opening scene in the film shows Colonel Edwards walking through the island, and passing through Liggett Hall. The Korean prison camp scenes were shot at the Conejo Ranch near Agoura, California.
In addition to playing the lead, Richard Widmark also co-produced Time Limit (1957). Widmark reportedly paid $100,000 to The Theatre Guild for the film rights to the play "Time Limit." It was the first picture for Widmark's independent production company, Heath Productions, Inc.