Arsenic and Old Lace is a 1944 film directed by Frank Capra based on a play of the same name by Joseph Kesselring. The script was adapted by Julius J. Epstein. Capra actually filmed the movie in 1941, but it was not released until 1944, after the original stage version had finished its run on Broadway. The lead role of Mortimer Brewster was originally intended for Bob Hope, but he couldn't be released from his contract with Paramount. Capra had also approached Jack Benny and Ronald Reagan before settling on Cary Grant. Boris Karloff played Jonathan Brewster on the stage, while in the movie Raymond Massey, who "looks like Karloff", took his place. Because Karloff was still appearing in the Broadway play during the film's production, he was unable to do the picture.As stated in an episode of This Is Your Life, Karloff was actually an original producer of the stage play and received royalties whenever it was performed.

In addition to Grant as Mortimer Brewster, the film also starred Josephine Hull and Jean Adair as the Brewster sisters, Abby and Martha, respectively. Hull and Adair as well as John Alexander (who played 'Teddy Roosevelt') reprising their roles from the 1941 stage production. Hull and Adair both received an 8 week leave of absence from the stage production that was still running, but Karloff did not as he was an investor in the stage production and its main draw. The entire film was shot within those 8 weeks. The film cost just over $1.2 million of a $2 million budget to produce.From the special feature section of Warner Bros. DVD release 65025.1B