Where to watch Doctor Zhivago (1965)

Trivia & production notes

• Omar Sharif initially requested to play Pasha after learning David Lean was adapting the novel, but was surprised when Lean suggested he play the title role instead.
• Michael Caine screen-tested for Zhivago opposite Julie Christie, then recommended Omar Sharif for the role after reviewing the footage with David Lean.
• David Lean rejected Sophia Loren for the role of Lara, telling producer Carlo Ponti she was too tall and confiding to screenwriter Robert Bolt that he could not accept her as a virgin in the film's early scenes.
• Omar Sharif directed his own son Tarek, who played young Zhivago, as a way to deepen his connection to the character.
• Boris Pasternak began writing Doctor Zhivago in 1945 but did not finish it until 1956, taking over a decade to complete.
• The novel had to be smuggled out of the Soviet Union by an Italian named D'Angelo to reach publisher Giangiacomo Feltrinelli, who published it in 1957.
• David Lean selected Spain as the primary filming location, but his team encountered Spain's warmest winter in 50 years, forcing them to create artificial snow from nearby marble quarry dust.
• The frozen beeswax house used for the Varykino ice-palace scenes was filmed during summer in warm temperatures, sometimes reaching 77 degrees Fahrenheit.
• Nicolas Roeg began as the director of photography but left after an argument with David Lean and was replaced by Freddie Young.
• An on-set accident occurred when Hungarian actress Lili Muráti slipped while boarding a moving train, falling under the wagon but escaping serious injury and returning to work within three weeks, with Lean apparently using part of the accident in the final film.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article Doctor Zhivago (film), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Rewritten for StreamShack; errors are ours — tell us about them.