Here at FEARnet we’re celebrating one of the most famous horror tales ever told, Robert Lewis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  This classic story of man and his inner struggle has been retold and rehashed time and time again, and this year marks the 100th anniversary of the first film adaptation of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the first American horror film!  Though the movie is now lost to the dusty tomes of time, we’re celebrating both the film and the famous tale on which it’s based with our retrospective on all things Jekyll and Hyde!

The Film Adaptations

As with many of the earliest films, the lost 1908 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde took much of its inspiration from the stage.  In fact, most of it was taken directly from the 1897 stage play, including a filmed curtain rising at the start and falling at the end.  The film, silent of course, was met with positive reviews and its young star, Hobart Bosworth, was singled out for his performance.  This sixteen-minute short showed just how well Stevenson’s work could translate to film, and another silent-era Dr. Jekyll (starring a young Martha Mansfield) hit silver screens in 1920.

The advent of sound in movies brought us what is still, arguably, the best adaptation of the work.  In 1931 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, starring Fredric March and Miriam Hopkins, brought particular notoriety to the story due to its Mr. Hyde make-up effects, as well as the heightened sexuality of having Hopkins play a prostitute.  Hyde’s make-up for the film depicted him as rugged, hairy, and seemingly a step down on the evolutionary chart.  Ten years later, Victor Fleming directed Spencer Tracy and Ingrid Bergman in a remake of the 1931 adaptation, but it paled in comparison to the original, and is largely noteworthy because of its cast, which also included screen siren Lana Turner. 

Let’s not leave the Brits out of the film history books here.  After all, Jekyll and Hyde is an English horror story.  Among the solid British adaptations of Stevenson’s work is the 1971 I, Monster starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing.  Also of note is the Hammer Films production Dr. Jekyll & Sister Hyde, which turns the original story on its head by giving Jekyll’s alter ego a sex change!

With all of these intriguing adaptations, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde couldn’t help but sink into society’s consciousness.  And when something this archetypal sinks, strange things are bound to bubble up, as can be seen in some variations on the original story.  In addition to Sister Hyde, for instance, audiences were given Jekyll and Hyde…Together Again, which takes the classic story and throws in drugs, swinging sex and cheesy spoofing!  Sure it’s completely insane, but that’s really the whole fun of it.  And then there’s the equally wacky The Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Rock ‘n Roll Musical, an unapologetically campy B-horror musical.  Through in older classics like Abbott and Costello Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and the original, Jerry Lewis-starring The Nutty Professor, and it’s easy to see the impact Stevenson’s work has had on the populace.  Even the most pop of pop culture has accepted and integrated the story, like Hyde and Hare, which had Bugs Bunny meet up with the multiple personalities of Dr. Jekyll.  Yes, when Looney Tunes adapts your work, you’re officially a cultural phenomenon.

Television Adaptations

Luckily, the small-screen too has contributed to the rich legacy of Stevenson’s characters. In 1959, the great French director Jean Renoir took a stab at the material, and ended up with a TV movie called Le Testament du Docteur Cordelier. The names have been changed, and the story updated to take place in modern France, but it’s undeniably Jekyll and Hyde, and an interesting adaptation at that. Mr. Opale, the stand-in for Hyde, is handled in a surprisingly comedic way, yet he’s still totally unpredictable and violent – and we all know that funny and dangerous make for an unsettling combination. Hardcore gorehounds may not find Dr. Cordelier too frightening, but fans of the book and lovers of French cinema might want to take a look. 

The ensuing years have seen several other television adaptations, of varying degrees of quality. In the late 60’s there was a TV movie starring Jack Palance. Palance may be best remembered by today’s young audiences as Curly from City Slickers and a reference Seth Rogen’s character makes in The 40 Year Old Virgin.  But in his younger days Palance had an imposing look (best seen in the western classic Shane) that made him a good choice for the ghastly, unhinged Mr. Hyde. During the ‘70s and ‘80s there were only a handful of new adaptations, most mediocre if not downright bad. Things picked back up a bit, however, in 1990 when ABC produced a new mini-series starring that quintessential Englishman himself, Michael Caine. Although the critical reception wasn’t great, the series did lead to Emmy and Golden Globe nominations for the star. 

Following that version there was another lull, but Stevenson’s tale has recently been enjoying a minor resurgence in television land. Last year, the BBC produced a series simply titled Jekyll, starring James Nesbitt. Rather than rehash the original story once more, they chose to continue it, by focusing on a modern day descendent of Dr. Jekyll. Most recently, NBC has pushed the modern re-interpretation envelope even further with their upcoming My Own Worst Enemy. This series takes the Jekyll character and turns him into an average suburbanite leading a double life; a split personality who is a wicked assassin. The real kicker about this action spin on the story is that it stars Christian Slater

Other Pop Culture Appearances

Having already enjoyed a successful life as a stage play, and considering the success of the musical adaptation of fellow horror classic Phantom of the Opera, it’s no surprise The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was eventually adapted into a Broadway musical. This award-winning adaptation has been staged all over the world, with tours running from the mid-1990s to the present. Rock singer Sebastian Bach and TV (and German music) star David Hasselhoff have famously played the leads in later productions of the musical, and there are now allegedly plans to produce a film version.

Perhaps the truest sign, however, that this classic story has secured a spot in the pop culture lexicon is the fact that it has even been adapted into a video game. In 1988 Bandai released its Jekyll and Hyde game for the original Nintendo Entertainment System. The player must guide Dr. Jekyll through town so that he can be married. Along the way the good doctor is harassed by belligerent townsfolk and animals, which he must avoid or fend off with his cane. If his attackers score too many hits on him, his anger meter reaches the top and he transforms into Mr. Hyde, Incredible Hulk-style. At this point the game becomes even more inexplicable, as Hyde is transported to a nightmarish mirror image of the sunny town, where he must battle various monsters with what appear to be fireballs. Needless to say, it’s a loose adaptation.  The bizarre nightmare realm was probably just an excuse to give monster-loving kids something cool to fight, and the tenuous connection to the original novel probably just a marketing ploy designed to suck in concerned parents hoping to give their children something literary and wholesome to play.  It certainly won’t be remembered as one of the better games of the ‘80, but it is a fascinating oddity, and a sure sign of the story’s timelessness and wide-ranging appeal.

Finally, one of the most interesting additions into the Jekyll and Hyde canon has to be New York City’s Jekyll and Hyde Club.  The Jekyll and Hyde Club is a full-service restaurant full of creepy characters and costumed wait staff.  The mythology of the restaurant itself is as intricate as a good pulp horror read.  According to their own legend, the restaurant was founded and still run by Dr. Jekyll, who fled London in the ‘30s and has been playing host in New York since then.  Sprinkle in a ridiculous cast of characters (both flesh-and-blood and animatronic) and you’ve got a horror dining experience like none other!

All of these adaptations and variations point to one thing – the enduring legacy of Robert Lewis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.  Some may stick closer to the source material than others, but all come from a place of respect and admiration.  Though the original filmed version of Jekyll and Hyde seems lost forever, it’s the spirit of the piece that has propelled creators of dark fiction, horror, and suspense forward throughout the last century.