text: The man whose father married Tippi Hedren and who spent years living with Melanie Griffith as her stepbrother is opening up about the infamous lion film the two made with their parents, Roar. They worked, and lived, with lions for the 11 years they made the film, and now, John Marshall, son of director Noel Marshall who was married to Hedren, is saying of his father's decision; 'Dad was a f**king **hole to do that to his family.' He then added; 'It seemed like a really cool idea at the beginning, but it was dangerous.' Scroll down for video . Tippi Hedren, muse to the famed director Alfred Hitchcock, has fun with her lion Neil . Griffith, aged just 14, leaps into the swimming pool in her Sherman Oaks, Los Angeles, home as she playfights with her enormous pet lion, Neil . The film Roar became infamous for the injuries received by 70 members of the cast and crew during production . 'Dad was a f**king **hole to do that to his family,' says James Marshall (left with Hedren) about making him and Griffith (right) star in Roar . The film billed, as the most dangerous ever made is making a return to the big screen nearly 35 years after its original release. Noel Marshall’s action-adventure film was originally released in 1981 and its 11-year production is infamous for the injuries received by 70 members of the cast and crew. 'You’re fine with lions and tigers as long as you don’t show any fear,” Marshall told the New York Post. 'The problem is that the plot required us to show fear. These animals who had learned to respect us were totally confused when we started acting terrified.' The film revolves around a wildlife preservationist who lives with his wife and children alongside a number of wild lions, tigers, cheetahs and elephants. Its re-release is due to be shown at a handful of cinemas in the US in April, and will be made available to the wider public on a number of platforms as well. While the plot line for the film itself – two lions putting a family at serious risk by battling for domination – is action-packed, it is in fact the back story that is the most chilling aspect of the tale. The idea for the film came about when Noel Marshall and Hedren discovered an abandoned plantation house overrun by a large pride of lions while touring wildlife preserves in Africa. Hoping to raise awareness for the inhumane treatment experienced by big cats in captivity, they approached a number of animal trainers for help make the concept for the film a reality. Hedren takes on Neil in a dangerous-looking wrestling match on the floor of their California home . A maid steps over Neil VERY carefully in the family's kitchen while the big cat rests . Noel Marshall is featured riding on a motorbike at the start of the trailer as one of the lions strikes out at him . The idea of the film arrived when Noel Marshall and Hedren discovered a plantation house overrun by lions . Neil Marshall and Hedren wanted to raise awareness for the inhumane treatment experienced by cats in captivity . The couple then began adopting and breeding lions in their home in Los Angeles and for six years the family of six lived alongside the pack. They eventually moved to a range north of Los Angeles and began filming. The trailer for the film documents some of the dangers the family put themselves through during production. James Marshall recalls what he went through first hand one day on set and he fell while running, which resulted in a lion pouncing on him. 'I looked up and there was blood on his teeth. It took six guys to pull him off me and I got 56 stitches,' he said. 'I had to work with that lion on and off for five years because we kept running out of money.' Noel Marshall is featured on a motorbike at the start of a film trailer, riding through a pack of lions as one of them strikes out at him as he passes by. Later he is tackled to the ground by another lion as a humorous review from HitFix appears on the screen: ‘It’s like Walt Disney went insane and shot a snuff version of Swiss Family Robinson’. Genuine fear can be seen etched onto the faces of the various crew members as they are confronted on numerous occasions by the pack. The video concludes with the credits and the various injuries sustained by the cast members. Hedren suffered a broken leg, Griffith needed facial reconstruction surgery and Noel Marshall was gored so many times he was eventually hospitalised with gangrene. The film’s cinematographer, Jan de Bont – who later went on to direct Die Hard – required 220 stitches after he was scalped by a lion. Hedren uses Neil as an oversized pillow while catching up on the news. Now aged 84, she still keeps lions . The film will be re-released 34 years after it debuted in 1981 and will be shown at a handful of US cinemas . No lions were harmed during the making of the film, however. Drafthouse Films partnered with Olive Films to re-release the film, which will be available on numerous platforms later in the summer, and be released on Blu-ray this summer. 'It was amazing to live through that,' James Marshall says of the experience. 'I should have died many times. But I kind of want to do it again.'
target: Roar, the film that took 11 years to create and was originally released in cinemas 1981 is being re-released at some cinemas in the US in April .
  Film features Noel Marshall, his real-life partner Tippi Hedren and their kids, James Marshall and Melanie Griffith .
  Family lived alongside 150 untamed animals in order to make movie .
  'Dad was a f**king **hole to do that to his family,' says James in a new interview .
  Injuries to the crew included a broken leg, gangrene and large wounds, with James needing six men to pull a lion off him at one point .