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The Conqueror (1956) United States

A Howard Hughes-funded epic film featuring American actor John Wayne as Mongolian chieftain Genghis Khan and the redheaded Susan Hayward as a Tatar princess. The movie was filmed near St. George, Utah, downwind from a nuclear testing range in Nevada, and is often blamed for the cancer deaths of many of the cast and crew, including Hayward, Wayne, Agnes Moorehead, Pedro Armendáriz, and director Dick Powell.The film made the 10-worst list in The Book of Lists, appears in Michael Sauter's book The Worst Movies of All Time, and was one of the films listed in Michael Medved's book The Fifty Worst Films of All Time. Originally written for Marlon Brando, the choice of Wayne for Khan was called by The Guardian "one of the worst casting decisions of all time".

Hughes, one of the richest men at the time, had previously produced the popular dramatic films Hell's Angels, Scarface, and The Outlaw. After seeing The Conqueror himself, Hughes bought every existing print for $12 million and refused to let the film be seen on television until 1974. Reportedly, he felt very guilty over the decision to shoot at such a hazardous site. By 1980, a full 91 of the 220 cast and crew had been diagnosed with cancer. This was the last film that Hughes produced before dying in 1976.