The movie is based on the novel "Dead Calm" by Charles Williams.
Orson Welles had filmed it under the name of "The Deep" (previous title: "Dead Reckoning"), based on his own script. The film starred
Jeanne Moreau,
Laurence Harvey,
Michael Bryant, Welles' then-wife
Oja Kodar, and Welles himself. The original story had more characters in it than the 1989 film version. Filming lasted from 1967 till 1969. A few scenes could not be filmed, due to the death of Laurence Harvey in 1970, and so Welles' version never reached the big screen.
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