Chaplin produced the film as a starring vehicle for his former leading lady Purviance, and to help establish Von Sternberg, whose 1924 experimental film "The Salvation Hunters "had greatly impressed Chaplin. This was the only time Chaplin produced a film in which he neither starred nor directed. His involvement in the production was minimal, as he was concurrently working on his problem-plagued film "The Circus" (released 1928). This was Purviance's final American film, followed by a French feature film, "Education of a Prince" (1927), after which she retired from movies.