15 Movie Sets You Didn't Know Were Hell To Work On

10. The Wizard Of Oz

Why It Was Hell: Trouble began mere days into Oz's filming, when Buddy Ebsen, the original Tin Man, suffered an allergic reaction to his make-up and ended up in hospital, shutting production down while he was replaced. Five directors ultimately worked on the film (causing many scenes to be re-shot), which took six months of six-day weeks to shoot, while numerous cast members struggled with overwhelming make-up that made it difficult to eat, actress Margaret Hamilton suffered a burn during filming which kept her off-set for 6 weeks, and later, her stunt-woman was also horribly burned. Was It Worth It?: Oz was nominated for six Oscars (including Best Picture), won two (Best Original Song and Best Original Score), and though not a huge box office smash upon release, has been a constantly in-demand movie over more than seven decades, ensuring it's made MGM a fine penny over the years. In addition, it remains regarded as one of the greatest films ever made, near-unanimously praised by both critics and audiences as a crowd-pleasing fantasy with glorious visuals that have undeniably stood the test of time.
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Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.