Frankenstein: Complete Universal Monsters Movies

The iconic horror film series still resonates decades later.

Following the success of Dracula, Universal Studios moved from strength to strength with Frankenstein. Inspired by the novel by Mary Shelley, the famed story had already been adapted into multiple stage productions and even one film. Starring Boris Karloff under iconic makeup by Jack Pierce, the Universal Monsters approach to the monster haunted generations of filmgoers. It led to numerous sequels, including crossovers with the Wolf Man, Dracula, and even the Abbott and Costello film series.

(Revised 4/12/24. Originally posted 7/19/21.)

Part of a series celebrating the many versions of Frankenstein’s Monster

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COMPLETE LIST OF FRANKENSTEIN MOVIES FROM UNIVERSAL

Frankenstein (1931) with Boris Karloff, Colin Clive, Mae Clarke, John Boles

Bride of Frankenstein (1935) with Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester, Colin Clive, Valerie Hobson

Son of Frankenstein (1939) with Boris Karloff, Béla Lugosi, Basil Rathbone Lionel Atwill

The Ghost of Frankenstein (1942) with Lon Chaney, Jr., Béla Lugosi, Evelyn Ankers, Cedric Hardwicke, Ralph Bellamy, Lionel Atwill

Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man (1943) with Lon Chaney, Jr., Béla Lugosi

House of Frankenstein (1944) with Boris Karloff, Lon Chaney Jr., J. Carrol Naish, John Carradine, Anne Gwynne, Lionel Atwill, George Zucco, Elena Verdugo

House of Dracula (1945) with Lon Chaney, Jr., Martha O'Driscoll, John Carradine

Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein (1948) with Lon Chaney, Jr., Béla Lugosi, Bud Abbott, Lou Costello, Lenore Aubert, Jane Randolph

Alvin and the Chipmunks Meet Frankenstein (1999) with Ross Bagdasarian, Janice Karman, Michael Bell

Van Helsing (2004) with Hugh Jackman; Kate Beckinsale; Richard Roxburgh; David Wenham; Will Kemp; Kevin J. O'Connor; Shuler Hensley

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Will the real Frankenstein’s Monster please stand up?

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UNIVERSAL MONSTERS’ FRANKENSTEIN

The original Frankenstein series from Universal featured several horror films loosely inspired by the 1818 novel by Mary Shelley, revolving around the monster created by Dr. Frankenstein. He was portrayed at various times by Boris Karloff, Lon Chaney Jr., Bela Lugosi, and Glenn Strange.

An interesting side note: The monster’s famous shuffling and inarticulate manner is actually the result of a production decision. In the original version of Frankenstein Meets the Wolf Man, the creature was blind and talked with Bela Lugosi’s thick accent. But since the test audience didn’t like that, all the recorded dialogue was cut—including the parts that explained he was blind following the events of The Ghost of Frankenstein.

ABOUT MARY SHELLEY’S FRANKENSTEIN

Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus by Mary Shelley, published in 1818, is a novel full of grief and longing and the struggle with isolation, as well as the hubris of climbing the ladder of science without regard for morality or the ramifications (and responsibility) of unexpected success, Shelley’s “Frankenstein” has survived 200 years of creative adaptations and intellectual discussions. The version of the monster in the original novel is quite different from what we often see in adaptations—he is articulate, conflicted, and actually looks quite different than we’ve been trained to assume.

Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein was written to meet a challenge to “write a ghost story.” When she and a group of friends gathered at a mansion near Lake Geneva in Switzerland--a gathering that included Lord Byron, the poet Percy Shelley, and Lord Byron’s personal physician, John Polidori--inclement weather forced them to spend their holiday indoors.

As Mary Shelley and the others tried to make do with being stuck indoors, Percy Shelley suggested they have a contest to see who could write the best ghost story. When Mary Shelley began work on her story, she was only 18 years old.

The novel Frankenstein has endured because it represents so much to so many. A classic of western literature, a rousing story of terror, a Gothic romance, a tragedy—it is also considered one of the first (if not the first) works of science fiction.

In the more than 200 years since its first publication, the legend of Frankenstein has been recounted, remixed, retread, and rebooted into so many formats. The monster of Frankenstein has been adapted in books, films, television, cartoons, comics, audio dramas, stage productions, theme park attractions, and more.

ABOUT UNIVERSAL MONSTERS

The classic Universal Monsters film series lasted from 1923-1960, and has continued to resonate with classic horror movie fans for nearly a hundred years. Anchored by some of the most iconic movie monsters, the Universal Monsters stable includes Dracula, Frankenstein’s Monster, the Bride of Frankenstein, the Mummy, the Wolf Man, the Phantom of the Opera, the Invisible Man, and the Creature From the Black Lagoon.

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