Fritz Lang was initially offered to direct but passed on it, not wanting to be typecast as "an expert on lynching". (Lang had previously directed Fury, which also involved a lynch mob.)
Lana Turner got the role in February 1937, when she was in Hollywood for only one month. She was discovered while lunching, and was offered a screen test for a role.
Based on the murder trial of Leo Frank, the film does not mention that Frank was Jewish, a fact that generated more prejudice than his Northern background. The real life victim, Mary Phagan, was a youthful 13, a far cry from Lana Turner's post-pubescent sweater girl of 16.
Film debut of Allyn Joslyn.
First speaking role of 16-year-old Lana Turner.
The story is based on the murder trial of Leo M. Frank in 1915, despite the usual disclaimer at the start of the movie. Author Ward Greene covered that trial in Atlanta, Georgia, as a reporter.