There Are Over 170 (!) Frankenstein Adaptations & Christian Bale Brings in Another One
Yeap. That’s right. Good ol’ Frankenstein and his monster are that popular — and soon, Christian Bale and Jake Gyllenhaal will crank that number even higher.
Few stories in history have been quite as popular as the story of Dr. Frankenstein and his Monster. The modern (for the 19th century) retelling of the classic Golem tale, it all began with Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus — and spiraled out of control as soon as cinema was invented. And it’s still going!
Frankestein’s Monster to Be Revived (Literally)
The sheer number of this story’s adaptations is properly bizarre, but it doesn’t mean they’re going to stop.
A new version is coming right up from director Maggie Gyllenhaal, and it boasts an obnoxiously star-studded cast, consisting of but not limited to Christian Bale ( as the Frankenstein’s Monster), Jessie Buckley (as the Bride), and Jake Gyllenhaal ( presumably, as Dr. Euphronius).
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If you’re wondering who the Bride and Dr. Euphronius are, here’s the deal. The upcoming adaptation is called The Bride! and is not your classic retelling. In this movie, the Frankenstein’s Monster is feeling lonely, so he employs the help of one Dr. Euphronius to create a companion for himself. Together, they bring back a recently deceased young woman — and things quickly spiral out of control.
As recently announced, The Bride! is scheduled for a September 26, 2025 release.
Frankenstein’s Story Has Been Over-Adapted
We’ll be honest with you: we would’ve lost our marbles if we had to manually seek out and list every single adaptation of the Frankestein’s Monster’s story. Fortunately, Wikipedia exists — and even if we assume it doesn’t feature every last adaptation, it still lists 178 (!!!) movies featuring the Frankenstein’s Monster, including 2024’s Lisa Frankenstein and Frankenstein Legacy.
IMDb gives a more moderate estimation with only 47 titles revolving around Frankenstein, but it’s very inaccurate: at the very least, it doesn’t include any movies that premiered after 2012. We recently counted 69 direct Frankenstein adaptations.
Whichever number you prefer, the upcoming Bale and Gyllenhaal-led movie will be the 48th, 70th, or even 179th version of this story, and all of these numbers are genuinely ridiculous. Who would’ve guessed a patchwork zombie tale from the 19th century would become such a major cultural phenomenon!
The craziest part is that the first Frankenstein adaptation premiered over a century ago, back in 1910 — and since then, there’s been no stopping them. We’re already expecting one more in 2024 and another one in 2025.
And they say that Pride and Prejudice has been over-adapted…