The final of four 1970s filmed adaptations of novels by Alexandre Dumas featuring Richard Chamberlain. The films being I tre moschettieri (1973), Milady (1974), Il conte di Montecristo (1975) and L'uomo dalla maschera di ferro (1977), with a fifth made in the late 1980s, Il ritorno dei tre moschettieri (1989).
Though made for television, this movie was released theatrically in several territories around the world, including Denmark, Hungary, East Germany, and West Germany.
The French Vaux-le-Vicomte chateau of the real-life Nicolas Fouquet (Patrick McGoohan) was used for the grand ball finale sequence.
In the novel, the plot to replace Louis with Phillipe is engineered and executed by the Musketeer Aramis, with some unwitting aid by Porthos. Neither character, nor the third Musketeer Athos, appears in this movie. However, Louis and Phillipe are played in this movie by Richard Chamberlain, who also played Aramis in I tre moschettieri (1973), The Four Musketeers: Milady's Revenge (1974), and The Return of the Musketeers (1989).