Revisiting Roar (1981), Perhaps the Most Dangerous Movie Ever Made
- Luke Bradley
While filming Satan's Harvest (if that movie name ain’t foreshadowing, I don’t know what is) in Mozambique 1969, Hollywood power couple Noel Marshall and Tippi Hedren had an encounter with nature that would awaken in them one new passion as well as one very, very bad idea. The couple stumbled upon a pride of lions living in an abandoned house, having been forced from their natural habitat by poachers. They were shocked to hear stories from the local guides about the hunting of these majestic animals, and at that moment they knew they had to do something. When filming wrapped, Marshall and Hedren returned to California, but not without a new “pet” issue to champion: to protect big cats at all costs.
With loads of disposable income and without any of the legal paperwork or permissions, they began rescuing more and more lions, tigers, leopards, and other animals from zoos and circuses, bringing them to their properties in Los Angeles. For good measure, they even threw in an elephant, because why not? And as they acquired more and more of the cute, fluffy, lethal predators, they had a eureka moment: “what if we made a movie, but instead of actors..there are lions!? mind explodes”
Trust me, I wish I were kidding.
It was an amazing thing to see: The lions were sitting in the windows, they were going in and out of the doors, they were sitting on the verandas, they were on the top of the Portuguese house, and they were in the front of the house [...] It was such a unique thing to see and we thought, for a movie, let us use the great cats as our stars.
— Tippi Hedren
Tippi Hedren with one of the big cats of ‘Roar’
Marshall and Hedren began conceptualizing the film and gaining support from their children, including Hedren’s daughter Melanie Griffith, who would star in the film and would thus sustain one of the worst of the myriad injuries suffered on set.
It all sounds like a whimsical notion, but what followed was one of the most dangerous film productions in history. Roar (1981) is not just a movie; it is a cinematic anomaly, a real-life testament to hubris, courage, and chaos. And that’s exactly why you need to see it.
Behind the Scenes: Chaos and Carnage
The ‘most dangerous movie in the world’ tag makes sense now, doesn’t it?
The set of Roar became infamous for its danger, as the production team surrounded themselves daily by lightly trained, unpredictable predators. Miraculously there were no fatalities, but the injuries on set were predictably staggering: 70 members of the cast and crew were hurt, including several life-threatening incidents with the film’s highest profile stars.
- Noel Marshall, the director and star, was bitten so many times he developed gangrene and blood poisoning. A particularly bad bite to his hand nearly cost him the limb.
- Tippi Hedren, known for her iconic role in The Birds, suffered a fractured ankle after being lifted by a five-ton elephant and was bitten in the head by a lion.
- Melanie Griffith, Hedren’s daughter, endured a mauling that required 50 stitches and threatened her eyesight.
- Cinematographer Jan de Bont was scalped by a lion while filming, requiring 220 stitches. Incredibly, he returned to finish the movie and later directed hits like Speed and Twister.
These accounts only scratch the surface of the chaos. Watching Roar is like witnessing a death-defying stunt that lasts for 102 minutes. It’s not just a movie—it’s an experience of sheer disbelief.
What Roar Is Really About
The plot of Roar is deceptively simple. Noel Marshall plays Hank, a man living on a wildlife preserve in Tanzania with his beloved big cats. When his family arrives to visit, they find themselves in a house overrun by the animals and must survive until Hank returns.
Noel Marshall on the set of Roar
On paper, it’s a straightforward story. On screen, it’s pandemonium. The sheer number of big cats—150 roaming freely on set—turns every scene into an adrenaline rush. Dialogue, plot, and even acting take a backseat to the unpredictable behavior of the animals. The result is a film that oscillates between comedy, terror, and awe—sometimes in the same scene. Roar is not so much a narrative as it is a visceral spectacle.
Roar’s Legacy
When Roar was released in 1981, it bombed at the box office, earning only $2 million against its $17 million budget. The production’s financial and physical toll left Marshall and Hedren bankrupt, and critics dismissed the film as reckless and incoherent. Yet, over time, Roar has earned a cult following, celebrated for its uniqueness and the jaw-dropping story behind its creation. Roar firmly belongs in the ignominious class of epic films that were way too dangerous but were made anyway, standing shoulder to shoulder with other films like Fitzcarraldo, The Abyss, and Apocalypse Now.
More than four decades later, Roar remains a one-of-a-kind film.
Choosing to streaming Roar is not just about watching a movie; it’s about immersing yourself in one of the most audacious experiments in filmmaking history. As you watch, you’ll marvel not only at the courage of the cast and crew but also at the sheer lunacy of their endeavor. You’ll laugh, you’ll gasp, and you’ll wonder: how did they survive this?
Whether you’re a cinephile, a thrill-seeker, or simply someone looking for a story so unbelievable it has to be true, Roar delivers. It’s a spectacle unlike any other, one which much be seen to be believed.
So if you’re the kind of movie lover who seeks out the absurd and the extreme, grab some popcorn (or maybe a massive slab of raw steak), settle in, and prepare for a movie experience unlike anything you’ve ever seen. And if you’re a cat owner, make sure Whiskers isn’t watching with you, or they might just get a bright idea.
