Tippi hedren lion attack tragedy

Neil sleeping with Melanie.

Neil sleeps in bed with Melanie Griffith.

Noel Marshall tries to work in his study with a lion in his face.

Tippi playing with Neil.

A housekeeper steps over pet lion Neil in the home of Tippi Hedren and Noel Marshall.

Hedren and then-husband, Noel Marshall ‘became obsessed’ with making the film, ‘Roar’ despite many warnings from animal experts who tried to advise otherwise.

She was also bitten in the neck by a lion and required 38 stitches; this incident can be seen in the film.

Melanie Griffith was also attacked, receiving 50 stitches to her face; it was feared that she would lose an eye, but she recovered and was not disfigured.

Marshall was attacked so many times that he eventually was diagnosed with gangrene.

But Roar’s message is so severely contradicted by its own production process that it collapses in on itself, coming off like a smile forced through a mouth full of blood.

As for the fate of the animal actors, who the proceeds from the film were meant to benefit, they remained on the property which soon became the Shambala wildlife preservation run by the Roar foundation, which Hedren founded in 1983.

While all of this may sound like the makings of a truly chilling horror movie, the film is actually a comedy, though the tone it strikes is too strange to easily classify as anything familiar. In one of those incidents, he was clawed by a cheetah when protecting the animals during a bushfire that occurred in 1979.

All animals were evacuated, and several years were needed for him to recover from his injuries.

This narrative serves as a poignant reminder of the importance of understanding and respecting wildlife.

However, far and away the most dangerous film of all time just recently celebrated its 43rd anniversary in October 2024: the 1981 horror comedy film "Roar," written, directed, and starring Noel Marshall and his real life family, including his wife Tippi Hedren and step-daughter Melanie Griffith.

In "Roar," Marshall plays a wildlife conservationist, Hank, who lives in Tanzania to study the behavior of big cats.

The family's experience with Neil and the making of "Roar" remains a testament to the unpredictable nature of wild animals and the lasting impact of Hedren's commitment to their welfare.

The story of Neil the Lion offers a fascinating glimpse into the world of exotic animal ownership and the unique bond between humans and wildlife. Marshall running full speed at a lion hoping it would give chase and Hedren covering her face in honey so another would lick it off are just two examples of the lengths they were willing to go to.

Notably, the animals are credited as actors and writers, and with names like ‘Cherries’ and ‘Robbie’ there’s an overwhelming sense that those involved in Roar had a naive view on the reality of wild animals.

Hedren reflects on the injuries in her book, admitting that she sometimes had reservations about Marshall’s willingness to risk the wellbeing of his wife and children.

Thanks to the hundreds of injuries sustained throughout filming the movie – which was meant to display the natural behaviour of the animals so largely relied on them to generate action – including the cinematographer being scalped by a lion, Roar is widely considered to be one of the most dangerous productions in cinema history. When your castmates include 71 lions, 26 tigers, a tigon, nine black panthers, 10 cougars, two jaguars, four leopards, two elephants, six black swans, four Canadian geese, four cranes, two peacocks, seven flamingos, and a marabou stork; diva moments are more likely to end up with someone in the hospital than the tabloids.

Originally met with mixed reviews, the film has gained a second life recently thanks to renewed interest in the bizarre (and often gory) details of what the cast and crew, who lived among the animals during filming, went through to make it.

Her efforts focus on protecting these majestic animals and educating the public on the importance of responsible conservation.

This has inspired fans to reflect on the actress’ bizarre Hollywood life, which included an infamous incident in which Alfred Hitchcock tied birds to her. The film involved over 100 big cats and was notorious for the injuries sustained by cast and crew members, including Griffith, who required reconstructive surgery after being mauled by a lion.

We had a routine. Neil's life with Tippi Hedren and her family in their Los Angeles home during the 1970s highlights both the allure and the complexities of living with wild creatures.