The idea came from the stuntman Roy Sickner: in 1964 he doubled for Richard Harris on the set of Major Dundee, and there he pitched Peckinpah the story along with its title. The action was eventually moved to 1913, to the Texas–Mexico border, at the height of the revolution.
Pike Bishop was meant to be played by Lee Marvin, and it was his idea for the gang to ride into town in American soldiers' uniforms. But his agent took him off to the musical Paint Your Wagon for a million, and the role went to William Holden. The photos show the stone arcades of the hacienda and a Panavision camera in the dust.
