Casting well-known Hollywood actress Claudette Colbert proved quite contentious in Great Britain. Many British actors complained that casting Colbert took work away from other worthy British performers.
There were several changes to the script regarding how the Malayan rebels were depicted, due in large part to the real world rebellion between the communist insurgents of the Malayan Races Liberation Army (MRLA) and the newly independent Malayan Union. The film's bandits were ultimately depicted in a violent and unsympathetic light, to reflect British public opinion.
The famous fight scene between the cobra and the mongoose was quite real. The animals were loosed on one another and fought to the death.
After years of being protected in Hollywood, Colbert reportedly enjoyed being allowed to do her own action scenes and firing a machine-gun.
The British version of the film kept the name of the novel, "The Planter's Wife," whilst the American version changed the name to "Outpost in Malaya" after "White Blood" was abandoned.