The Outlaw was the first American film that defied the "Production Code" of the Hays Office, which dictated what could and could not be shown on screen. Jane Russell got the role after a nationwide search by Howard Hughes for a busty actress. Howard Hawks started as director but quit after two weeks, ostensibly to direct Sergeant York (1941). However, Howard Hughes, who had the dailies flown to Los Angeles daily, had complained that Hawks was not spending enough time filming, which probably precipitated his leaving. Hughes took over as director in December 1940 and announced all scenes would be re-shot by Gregg Toland, who replaced the original cinematographer, Lucien Ballard. However, screenwriter Jules Furthman filled in for Hughes as director on December 31, 1940 and often thereafter. Although the film was finished and copyrighted in February 1941, it was not shown theatrically for another two years, mostly because of censorship problems that required cuts and revisions. By May 1941 the Production Code Authority (PCA; the industry censors) agreed to approve the film, but Howard Hughes found that many state censor boards wanted a lot more cuts than he was willing to make, so he shelved the film until 2/5/1943, when it was finally shown theatrically in San Francisco in the 115-minute version that we essentially see today. It caused quite a sensation, especially since Jane Russell and Jack Buetel performed a 20-minute scene that was cut from the film after each showing. More hassles about its possible release in New York caused Hughes to shelve the picture once again.