James Clavell was an Australian-born British writer, screenwriter, director, and World War II veteran and prisoner of war. Clavell is best known for his Asian Saga novels, a number of which have had television adaptations. Clavell also wrote such screenplays as those for The Fly (1958), based on the short story by George Langelaan, and The Great Escape (1963), based on the personal account of Paul Brickhill. He directed the popular 1967 film To Sir, with Love, for which he also wrote the script.

The Fly is a 1958 American science fiction horror film and the first installment in The Fly film series. The film was produced and directed by Kurt Neumann and stars David Hedison, Patricia Owens, Vincent Price, and Herbert Marshall. The screenplay by James Clavell is based on the 1957 short story of the same name by George Langelaan.