When Orson Welles first set up his production deal with RKO in 1940, this was to be their first movie. Excessive costs made it too prohibitive and so they proceeded with Citizen Kane (1941) instead.
Based on Joseph Conrad's novel of the same name.
Tim Roth's character was also the inspiration for Cpt. Benjamin Willard (Martin Sheen) in Apocalypse Now (1979). That part was originally given to Harvey Keitel, with whom Roth worked in Reservoir Dogs (1992). Keitel ended up appearing in another Joseph Conrad adaptation, The Duellists (1977).
Ian McDiarmid is best known for playing Emperor Palpatine in the Star Wars films. Fellow Star Wars cast member Harrison Ford appeared in Apocalypse Now (1979), which was based on the same novel. Star Wars creator George Lucas was originally to direct the film, and is credited with the story idea of retelling the story in Vietnam. The climax of Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi (1983) is also based on Lucas's original concept for the end of Apocalypse Now (1979).