A nude scene featuring actress Marilyn Monroe from director John Huston's “The Misfits” never actually made it into the 1961 movie and was long believed destroyed ‒ but a new investigation reveals it was preserved and has been hidden away for more than 50 years.

Author Charles Castillo recently discovered that producer of "The Misfits" Frank Taylor had preserved the footage while Castillo was doing research for his book "Marilyn Monroe: The Private Life of a Public Icon," which is expected to be released Tuesday.

Castillo made the discovery during his interview with Curtice Taylor, Frank Taylor's son, who revealed that the footage had been safeguarded in a locked cabinet ever since his father died in 1999, the Deadline reported Sunday. According to Curtice, it has not yet been decided what will become of the newly discovered footage.

In the love scene between Monroe and fellow star Clark Gable, Monroe drops a bedsheet and exposes her naked body. It was allegedly Monroe's idea to drop the sheet and would have been one of the first nude scenes by an American actress in a major film from that time. The film's director eventually cut it because he thought it was unnecessary to the plot, the Huffington Post reported Monday. However, Taylor held onto the film of the scene because he believed that it was important.

"The Misfits," which tells the story of three cowboys competing for the attention of beautiful divorcee (Monroe), was written by Arthur Miller, Monroe's husband at the time. Monroe's role in the film was her last before her death in 1962 at the age of 36 from a sleeping pill overdose.

Monroe was an American actress, model and singer who usually played "blonde bombshell" characters. She was one of the most iconic sex symbols of the 1950s and continues to be a popular cultural icon.