During the Joseph McCarthy-inspired "Red Scare" era in the 1950s, this was one of the films labeled "subversive" by the HUAC (House Un-American Activities Committee) because it was alleged to have contained dialog that might be construed as pro-communist. Writer John Wexley was even "blacklisted". It wasn't seen again in the United States until the mid-'70s.
French censorship visa : # 5465.
Originally, Bertolt Brecht was denied story credit by the Screen Writer's Guild, even though he worked closely with writer John Wexley on the project.
The idea for the film was inspired by the assassination of Gestapo official Reinhard Heydrich by Czech guerrillas and the subsequent reprisals taken by Nazi occupation forces.
The original titles for the project were "No Surrender" and "Never Surrender" They had to choose a new title because a book was published with a similar title during production. Producers held a contest among the cast and crew to choose a new title. A production secretary submitted the winning title and won $100.
Two cast members have played characters involved with the sale of real estate to the vampire based on Bram Stoker's novel. Alexander Granach appeared as Knock, the House Broker in F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu. Dwight Frye appeared as Renfield in Tod Browning's Dracula.