The Little Shop of Horrors some distributors, including American International Pictures (AIP), felt that the film would be interpreted as anti-Semitic, citing the characters of Gravis Mushnick and Siddie Shiva. Welles, who is Jewish, stated that he gave his character a Turkish Jewish accent and mannerisms, and that he saw the humor of the film as playful, and felt there was no intent to defame any ethnic group. The film was finally released by its production company, The Filmgroup, nine months after it had been completed. "The Little Shop of Horrors" was screened out of competition at the 1960 Cannes Film Festival. A year later,
The Little Shop of Horrors father appears as a dental patient, and his grandmother, Myrtle Vail, appears as Seymour's hypochondriac mother. Dick Miller, who had starred as the protagonist of "A Bucket of Blood" was offered the role of Seymour, but turned it down, instead taking the smaller role of Burson Fouch. Production at the "Bucket of Blood" sets was compressed into three days of cast rehearsals, immediately followed by two days and one night of principal photography. It had been rumored that the film's shooting schedule was based on a bet that Corman could not complete a film within that time. However, this claim