According to reviews, Cowards was shot on location in New York City. Although the picture was initially released in 1970, at a running time of 89 minutes, details in the 1972 Filmfacts and an 8 Nov 1971 Box review of Love-In '72 confirm that it was a somewhat altered version of Cowards. Love-In '72 was listed at a running time of 86 minutes and, according to the Box review, was to be released in Nov 1971, but no public screenings have been confirmed under that title.
       Production credits for Cowards list Simon Nuchtern as the film's sole producer, director and screenwriter, while reviews for Love-In '72 credit Lewis Mishkin as the producer, Sidney Knight and Karl Hansen as the directors and Jay Robins as the screenwriter. It is possible that Simon Nuchtern was a pseudonym for Mishkin, Knight, Hansen and Robins. As noted in the Box review, Mishkin was the son of veteran exploitation film distributor William Mishkin. The film marked the feature film debut of character actor Spalding Gray.
       The cast list for Cowards and Love-In '72 are the same, except that Love-in '72 adds two actors: Linda Southern, who is listed first in the cast in Filmfacts, as a character named "Sunny," and Daniel Nugent as "Steven Hilton." The summary of Love-In '72 in Filmfacts suggests that Southern and Nugent were featured in a framing story in which Steven related the story of "Philip Haller." At the end of Philip's story, Sunny comments on the futility of war and encourages Steven to remain in the Canadian hippie commune and accept its pleasure-seeking lifestyle. It has not been determined what parts of Cowards were edited out of Love-In '72 to make room for the scenes featuring Southern and Nugent.