The film was initially broadcast on television on 1 January 1961 in West Germany before being released theatrically in the United States in 1962.

[1] Bill Gibron, writing for DVD Verdict, said that "In the literary life, you either love Shakespeare or you don't, and the Germans definitely do not.

"[3] Kevin Murphy of Mystery Science Theater 3000 wrote, "Leave it to Germany to turn a bleak brooding play into an even bleaker, broodinger movie-of-the-week for German television.

Schell provided his own voice: among the other actors used for the dub were Ricardo Montalbán (Claudius) and John Banner (Polonius).

This dub was later featured in a season 10[5] episode of Mystery Science Theater 3000,[6] its length cut to fit the show's 92-minute runtime.