In December 1926, Dame Agatha Christie mysteriously disappeared for eleven days, and when she turned up again, no one could ever get a reliable explanation for her disappearance. Even when she died in 1976, no viable explanation was uncovered.
British writer Kathleen Tynan was so intrigued by the Agatha Christie disappearance story, she tried to make a documentary about those eleven days. But when funding fell through, she wrote a screenplay about the incident instead, a fictional version of it.
David Puttnam was involved with the production, but left when much of the script was re-written to accommodate Dustin Hoffman. David Puttnam vowed never to work with Hoffman again.
Michael Apted agreed to direct the film, and Apted brought the screenplay to one of the biggest stars of the late seventies, Dustin Hoffman, who agreed to star in the movie and produce it.
The film ran over budget and over schedule, and eventually, the project was taken out of Dustin Hoffman's control. There were lawsuits, and delays in post-production. Eventually, the director Michael Apted managed to calm the waters enough to convince Hoffman to complete the movie.