This movie grew in popularity when Mystery Science Theater 3000 made fun of it.
Patrizia Pellegrino says she was a little traumatized in reference to her shower scene: "It was the first scene I had to shoot on the first day of shooting! And I had never undressed on sets before, so imagine... then a full nude, what a shame... and the scene was also particularly violent !! I was shocked at the idea, but then everything passed and later I realized that when acting, the body becomes an instrument and you have to be free and open to face even tough situations."
The entire movie was shot in Malta, including the scenes set in Texas.
When shown the script, Joe Don Baker immediately loved the character of Thomas Jefferson Geronimo III and wanted to play the part. His only concern was the short length of the screenplay, as it contained just the first and final acts. Director Greydon Clark quickly assured Baker that once they arrived in Malta to shoot the film, he'd write up the second act.