The Wicker Tree tripped over power cables on set. Although very disappointed, Hardy gave the role intended for Lee to Graham McTavish, the actor who had originally been cast as Beame, the Morrisons' butler. Clive Russell plays Beame instead. Lee is still in the film, making a brief cameo appearance as the unnamed "Old Gentleman" who acts as Lachlan's mentor in a flashback. Robin Hardy has stated that fans of "The Wicker Man" will recognise this character as Lord Summerisle, but Lee himself has contradicted this, stating that they are two unrelated characters. Joan Collins was originally set to play Lady Delia Morrison
The Wicker Man As a former artist, Hardy expressed great interest in the medium of comics, and planned a graphic novel which would retell the story of "The Wicker Man", based on his own storyboards for the film. Hardy was in talks with yet unnamed artists to work on the project, as he found it too difficult to make the characters look consistent from one panel to the next. Hardy was working on his next film, "The Wrath of the Gods", at the time of his death on July 1, 2016. He intended the graphic novel and the new film to be released