Stuntman Jim Sheppard was killed when a horse that was dragging him veered from its course and caused him to hit his head on a fence post. The scene appears in the movie, although it was cut right before Sheppard's fatal accident.
To prepare for her role as Ella Connors, Jane Fonda learned roping and riding skills in order to partake in a stampede and cattle roundup in this movie. Fonda would practice at a ranch in the San Fernando Valley and at the filming location in the Wet Mountain Valley of Colorado where Fonda lived on a ranch, worked the cows, polished her lassoing skills, and assessed how ranch land cattle work was organized.
Jim Davis played a henchman for J.W. Ewing (Jason Robards, Jr.), an unscrupulous rancher who hopes to strike oil on his land. Immediately after completing this film, Davis signed on to play a character named J.R. Ewing, Sr., a.k.a. "Jock" Ewing, a Texas oil baron and father of the notorious J.R. Ewing, Jr. (Larry Hagman) on the television show Dallas (1978). Davis played the role on Dallas (1978) until his death in 1981.
Most Western movies are set during the second half of the 19th century, with some being set in the first half of the 1800s, but this Western was set in the middle of the 20th century in 1945.
Publicity for this this picture stated that the film was the first major speaking role for stuntman and actor Richard Farnsworth, who debuted in a much bigger role at the well-seasoned age of 58 years. Also in this big debut performance, Farnsworth, who had frequently appeared as an uncredited actor, got Academy Award nominated for Best Actor in a Supporting Role, which was the film's sole Oscar nomination.