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

By Jack Pooley /

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.