Originally shot in 1974 under the title 'L'uomo e il bambino', this film was shelved when one of the film financial backers died and ownership of the picture became entangled in bankruptcy proceedings before post-production had been completed, which prevented its theatrical release. The film sat on a shelf for almost 25 years until actress Lea Lander rescued it from oblivion by helping finance a DVD release: a new short prologue was shot, according to Bava's original script, and editing and scoring were completed using existing available materials. In 2002 producer Alfredo Leone and director Lamberto Bava (Mario's son), allegedly dissatisfied with the DVD edit, produced a new restored version of the film. Lamberto Bava and his son Roy shot additional footage and original composer Stelvio Cipriani created a new complete musical score (though the DVD release employed some of Cipriani's cues and themes, the film was never properly scored in 1974). This restored version, produced by Kismet Entertainment Group and retitled "Kidnapped", premiered theatrically in the US on May 31, 2002 as part of a Mario Bava retrospective at the American Cinematheque's Egyptian Theater in Hollywood