Bette Davis' debut. In later appearances on TV talk shows, whenever an interviewer asked Davis, "What was your first film?", her frequent response was: "It was called THE BAD SISTER. And I played the GOOD sister!" Invariably, the audience would roar with laughter and applaud.
Bette Davis was required to change a baby in one scene, and the fact the infant was a boy was kept secret from her. When she undid the diaper and saw male genitals for the first time in her life, she was so embarrassed her face reddened enough to look deep gray on screen.
Bette Davis and her mother attended a preview of the film in San Bernardino. The actress reportedly was so distressed by her performance that they left before the final credits. Certain her Hollywood career was over, she cried all the way home.
First collaboration of Humphrey Bogart with Bette Davis. They worked together in 7 movies: Bad Sister (1931), Three on a Match (1932), La foresta pietrificata (1936), L'uomo di bronzo (1937), Le cinque schiave (1937), Tramonto (1939), and Sotto le stelle di Hollywood (1943).
The film originally was called What a Flirt and then Gambling Daughters before being changed to Bad Sister just prior to its theatrical release.