In 1964, Jack Nicholson and director Monte Hellman wrote a semi-autobiographical script for Nicholson to star in, only for their mentor and producer Roger Corman to withdraw his backing at the last minute. The project, conceived as a metafictional drama about a struggling young actor, would have drawn on Nicholson's own patchy early career, but its cancellation left it as one of several films the actor made or attempted before Easy Rider transformed him into a star in 1969.

Nicholson's break came through Corman, who cast him repeatedly from 1958 onwards and connected him with Hellman, who directed him four times in two years, including on The Shooting and Ride in the Whirlwind. Hellman recalled the abandoned 1964 project was intended to use footage from Nicholson's earlier, lesser-known films, such as Studs Lonigan and various westerns, to tell the story of a jobbing young actor, but Corman pulled out after deciding it lacked commercial potential. Nicholson went on to build one of Hollywood's most successful careers, later claiming only two of the roughly 50 films he made after Easy Rider lost money.