Having just completed his contract with Warner Brothers, Paul Henreid took a 50% stake in this film - against his agent's advice. Henreid later said he made more money from this film than any other he had ever done.
According to TCM's Ben Mankiewicz, producers Edward J. Danziger and Harry Lee Danziger not only gave Paul Henreid 50% of the profits to star in this film, they gave him great creative control as well. He auditioned around 300 young actresses to play the troubled girls, and had the script re-written to his satisfaction.