Richard Fleischer repeatedly turned down Dino De Laurentiis' overtures to direct the film. He ultimately relented when he realized that the best way to make the film was to shoot it straight and tell the story as truthfully as he could.
In a ruthless underground tournament, the world's top assassins fight to the death. But hidden among them is a rogue crew with its own deadly agenda: infiltrate the competition, survive the bloodbath, and take down the mastermind pulling the strings.
Follows Pete, a professional hitman, as he faces a group of assassins after the boss of a crime syndicate suspects disloyalty due to his attendance at Workaholics Anonymous meetings.