Joe Bonomo, who starred as one of the man-beasts, was also Lon Chaney's stunt double in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. Charles Laughton also made a version of this classic story in The Hunchback of Notre Dame.
Verna Hillie was a finalist for the role of Lota the Panther Woman.
Charles Laughton already knew how to use a whip. He learned to use one for a previous stage role. His teacher was a London street performer.
Charles Laughton claimed that he based his Dr. Moreau appearance on that of his dentist.
After doing this film, Charles Laughton claimed that he could not go to a zoo for the rest of his life.
After making Island of Lost Souls, Charles Laughton humorously claimed that he couldn't go to a zoo for the rest of his life.
In response to British censors, who claimed the film was "against nature", Elsa Lanchester (Mrs. Charles Laughton) is said to have stated: "Of course it's against nature. So's Micky Mouse!"
Inspired the song of the same name, recorded by Blondie, released on 31 December 1981 as a 45 rpm single.
One of over 700 Paramount Productions, filmed between 1929 and 1949, which were sold to MCA/Universal in 1958 for television distribution, and have been owned and controlled by Universal ever since.
One of the film's uncredited actors, Joe Bonomo, nearly drowned during filming. He fell into a water tank and the foam rubber in his costume soaked up water, causing him to sink.
Parallels can be drawn between this film and Shakespeare's play "The Tempest", with Doctor Moreau as Prospero, Lola as Miranda, and Edward Parker as Ferdinand.
Shot October-November 1932. This was Charles Laughton's third Hollywood production, having already completed "The Old Dark House" and "The Sign of the Cross."
The film was refused a cinema certificate in 1933 by the BBFC and remained banned in the UK until July 1958.
The filmmakers wanted an unknown actress to play Lota, the Panther Woman. Kathleen Burke, their selection, was working as a dentist's assistant at the time. It was her first film role ever.
The identity of the actor who played "Owl Man" is unknown.
The participation of Buster Crabbe, Randolph Scott, and Alan Ladd in uncredited roles as "beasts" comes from the pages of Motion Picture Guide, and is otherwise undocumented and highly questionable.
The shooting location for Moreau's mysterious uncharted island was actually Catalina.
This was Charles Laughton's first starring role in a U.S. film.
To create the language of the mutants sound-man Loren L. Ryder recorded a mixture of animal sounds and foreign languages, then played them backwards at alternating speeds. The effect: the sound induced nausea and caused the audiences to vomit in the theaters.