In September 1955, the play was among six properties that 20th Century Fox purchased from the Charles K. Feldman Group (the others included "The Wayward Bus," "Lonely Steeple," "Tender Mercy," "Bernardine" and "Heaven Knows, Mr. Allison"). Two months later, 20th Century Fox announced that it had purchased the film rights and that the movie would be written and directed by Philip Dunne with Susan Hayward starring. The film was produced by Herbert B. Swope Jr., his first film since coming from the television industry. In December, the role went to Jean Simmons, of whom Dunne wrote three previous 20th Century Fox epic films she starred in, O Manto Sagrado (1953), Demétrio e os Gladiadores (1954) and O Egípcio (1954) and was only offered the title role as compensation for turning down Marilyn Monroe's role in O Pecado Mora ao Lado (1955), also produced by Feldman.