Carney's novel was subsequently published by Corgi Books under the same title as the film. The film was named The Wild Geese after the Wild Goose flag and shoulder patch used by Michael 'Mad Mike' Hoare's Five Commando, ANC, which in turn was inspired by a 17th-century Irish mercenary army (see Flight of the Wild Geese). The screenplay by Reginald Rose was based on an unpublished novel titled The Thin White Line by Daniel Carney. The producer and director would later make The Sea Wolves starring several cast members from this film. It was the result of a long-held ambition of its producer Euan Lloyd to make an all-star adventure film similar to The Guns of Navarone or Where Eagles Dare. The screenplay concerns a group of mercenaries in Africa.
McLaglen and starring Richard Burton, Roger Moore, Richard Harris, and Hardy Krüger. The Wild Geese is a 1978 British-Swiss war film directed by Andrew V. $3.5 million on first week (US/Canada rentals).