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Robin Hood
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DerivativeWorks / Robin Hood
Rob from the public domain, give to the retellings.
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This page lists adaptations of Robin Hood or works derived from the folk tale.

Original work:

  • Robin Hood, the legend from 14th-15th century English poems, tales, ballads and other folklore works. There's a list of them on the page.

Adaptations and derivative works:

    open/close all folders 

    Anime 

    Comic Book 
  • Muppet Robin Hood (2009): A comic book and the third Muppet take on the legend. As usual, Kermit was Robin and Piggy was Marian. Instead of Fozzie being Little John because he's Kermit's best friend, Sweetums took the role for maximum size difference.
  • Robyn Hood (2012): Introduced as part of the Grimm Fairy Tales universe by Zenescope Comics, the character of Robyn (a female version of Robin) has gone on to star in a number of mini-series and ongoing comics.
  • Sherwood, Texas (2014): From 12-Gauge Comics, it's a Setting Update that re-imagines Robin Hood as the leader of an outlaw biker gang battling the corrupt Sheriff of Nottingham County on the Texas/Mexico border.
  • Once & Future (2022): A monstrous and extremely violent Robin Hood, whose "Merry Men" are inhuman fae, is recruited by the protagonists to fight against the various incompatible versions of King Arthur who are fighting over Britain. The characters discuss how he began as an "angry peasant", was made less socially provocative in the modern era by turning him into a good noble who fought the corrupt nobility, and may have originally been a tamed version of an ancient fear of nasty things in the forest.

    Film - Animated 
  • The Adventures of Robin Hoodnik (1972): Animated spoof by Hanna-Barbera made as an ABC Saturday morning film, predating the better-known Funny Animal (only this time, strictly Rule of Funny) animated film by a year. Here, Robin is reimagined as a dog, an Idiot Hero who is henpecked by Maid Marian.
  • Robin Hood (1973): The Disney Animated Canon film, which tells the classic story with a Funny Animal cast. Robin is, appropriately, reimagined as a fox (the film was initially developed as an adaptation of the Reynard the Fox folktales, until Disney realised that even they couldn't make those Funny Animal stories family-appropriate). Likely the most famous animated adaptation of the legend.

    Film - Live-Action 
  • Robin Hood and His Merry Men (1908-1909?) : A silent movie and the first Robin Hood film produced, now lost.
  • Robin Hood (1912): A silent film with Robert Frazer as Robin made by Éclair American films. An interesting aspect is the delineation of character by cross-fading from the actors to various animals symbolizing their moral qualities.
  • Robin Hood (1913): A silent film issued in four parts by Thanhouser films, with William Russell as Robin, now lost.
  • Robin Hood (1922). Silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks. It was the most expensive film produced at the time of its release (the castle set was reputed to be the biggest ever built for a silent film). One notable feature — the first half of the film takes place in the Holy Land with Robin (as the Earl of Huntingdon) and King Richard; it's not until the second half that the action moves to Sherwood Forest. Alan Hale, Sr., who played Little John, would reprise the role for Errol Flynn's 1938 film. For years the film was thought to be lost — until a copy was rediscovered in the 1960s.
  • The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938). Arguably the most famous Hollywood film adaptation. Features an all-star cast including Errol Flynn (Robin), Olivia de Havilland (Marian), Basil Rathbone (Sir Guy of Gisbourne) and Claude Rains (Prince John). Also starred Alan Hale, Sr., who reprised his role as Little John (having played it 16 years earlier, as noted in the previous entry).
  • The Bandit of Sherwood Forest (1946). Starring Russell Hicks as an old Robin and Cornel Wilde as his son Robert of Nottingham that save the boy-king Henry III from usurpation by his scheming regent, the Earl of Pembroke (Henry Daniell).
  • The Prince of Thieves (1948): Robin Hood (Jon Hall) helps newly returned Crusader Sir Allan Claire rescue his betrothed Lady Christabel from an Arranged Marriage, while falling in love with Allan's sister Marian. Reuses several of the sets of Columbia's The Bandit of Sherwood Forest.
  • Rogues of Sherwood Forest (1950): Made by Columbia Pictures the movie contain an alternative son of Robin Hood (Jon Derek) and Alan Hale Sr. appeared as Little John for the third and last time in this film.
  • Ivanhoe (1952): The supporting characters of Locksley (Harold Warrender) and an unnamed Friar Tuck appear to help Ivanhoe when he and his family and allies are prisoners at Torquilstone.
  • The Story of Robin Hood and His Merrie Men (1952): Walt Disney Pictures production starring Richard Todd. Breaks the One-Steve Limit by featuring both "Wills" (Will Scarlet and Will Stutely) as separate characters (although the latter is barely seen and is referred to only by his surname).
  • Hammer Horror produced three Robin Hood films for British cinema:
    • The Men of Sherwood Forest (1954): With Don Taylor as Robin rescuing King Richard.
    • Sword of Sherwood Forrest (1960): Which had Richard Greene reprising his role from the ITV series with Peter Cushing as the Sheriff of Nottingham.
    • A Challenge for Robin Hood (1967): A full-blooded version with a Norman (!) Robin played by Barrie Ingham.
  • Son of Robin Hood (1958): Oddly enough, the "son" in this film is a daughter, Deering (June Laverick). Jamie of Chester (David Hedison) has to pose as Robin's son, since, of course, the Medieval Morons all believe that girls should Stay in the Kitchen.
  • Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964): A Frank Sinatra musical film that moves the story to Prohibition-era Chicago. Sammy Davis, Jr., as Will anticipates Mark Ryan's Moor character by a good 20 years; Bing Crosby as Allan A. Dale serves as both the friar and the minstrel figure; Peter Falk is the Big Bad, "Robbo"'s rival racketeer, Guy Gisborne; Barbara Rush plays Marian as a two-timing Femme Fatale running a plan of her own.
  • The Ribald Tales of Robin Hood (1969): Soft-core movie which was a fairly standard Robin Hood story with a lot more bare breasts than usual.
  • Wolfshead: The Legend of Robin Hood: Produced in 1969 as a pilot for a television series, it was released in theatres in 1973 with New Zealander David Warbeck as Robin. This version hewed very closely to the original ballad versions. Although it's largely obscure these days, it is a notable stepping stone in regards to the portrayal of Robin Hood stories as Darker and Edgier, with Richard Carpenter crediting it for inspiring the tone of Robin of Sherwood.
  • Up the Chastity Belt (1971): Features Hugh Paddick as a notable Robin Hood, leader of a band of men who were camp homosexual rather than merry.
  • Robin and Marian (1976). Film directed by Richard Lester , in which an aged Robin (Sean Connery), who has been campaigning in France, returns to England after Richard's death to find that Maid Marian (Audrey Hepburn) has become Prioress of Kirklees Abbey. Arguably a Deconstruction, since it shows the English nobility (including "Good" King Richard) as pretty rotten, and how utterly exhausting the sword fights and chase scenes in most Robin Hood movies would actually be.
  • Time Bandits (1981): Robin Hood makes a brief appearance played by John Cleese as an Upper-Class Twit.
  • The Zany Adventures of Robin Hood (1984): A made-for-TV parody, motable for a surprising number of recognizable names in its cast (if not much else): George Segal played Robin Hood, Morgan Fairchild played Maid Marian, Roddy McDowell played Prince John and Tom Baker (yes, that Tom Baker) played Guy of Gisbourne.

    Literature 
  • Robin Hood: A Collection of all the Ancient Poems, Songs and Ballads, now extant, relative to that celebrated Outlaw (1795): Published by Joseph Ritson. Ritson's commentaries on the ballads established the image of Robin as a freedom fighter against overbearing Royal tyranny (not coincidentally, Ritson was a firm supporter of The French Revolution).
  • G. K. Chesterton wrote a Robin Hood ballad, telling of a meeting between Maid Marian and the Virgin Mary after Robin's death.
  • The Chronicles of Robin Hood (1950): Rosemary Sutcliff first novel, a straightforward retelling of the best-known incidents from the legend.
  • The Adventures of Robin Hood (1956): Published by Roger Lancelyn Green, a friend of J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, which drew heavily on the original ballads as well as later material from Scott's Ivanhoe. In the introduction, Green gives an interesting summary of the extant English material on Robin Hood in his day and how he used it for his book.
  • Robin Hood: A High-Spirited Tale of Adventure starring Jim Henson's Muppets (1980): The Muppets second retelling of the story. Miss Piggy gets to be Maid Marian this time, but the rest of the main cast is much the same.
  • Parke Godwin's 1991 novel Sherwood and the 1993 Robin and the King place the story during the Norman Conquest with Robin as a Saxon earl and William the Conqueror and his son William Rufus as major characters.
  • Lady of the Forest (1992): Published by Jennifer Roberson it's a novel that retells the legend from Marian's pov. It was followed in 1999 by Lady of Sherwood. The books steer away from the mythological aspects of the legend and concentrate on Character Development. This might be the first time that Robin, who just returned from the crusades, is given post traumatic stress disorder and deals with it in a realistic way.
  • The Forestwife (1993): Published by Theresa Tomlinson, it's the first book in the Forestwife Trilogy; a well researched set of young adult novels focussing on Marian as the central character. The later books are Child of May (1998) and Path of the She Wolf (2000). The first book focuses on Marian and expands her role from The Heart to The Medic.
  • The Sherwood Game (1995): Novel by Esther Friesner that is about a Cyberspace game featuring the Robin Hood characters; it gets complicated when Instant A.I.: Just Add Water! kicks in. (Though things don't get really bad until the Corrupt Corporate Executive shows up.)
  • Maid Marian (2005): Written by Elsa Watson, this novel is narrated by the eponymous maid, who starts out as a noblewoman rescued from an unpleasant marriage by Robin and then goes through numerous adventures, only some of which involve Robin Hood.
  • King Raven King (2006-2009): A trilogy by Stephen R. Lawhead's (the books are Hood; Scarlett; Tuck), a retelling of the Robin Hood story... IN WALES after the Norman Conquest Several characters get renamed with Robin Hood becoming Rhi Bran y Hud.
  • There's an odd trend of an immortal Robin of Locksley showing up in fiction with a modern setting. See Marjorie M. Liu's "The Red Heart of Jade" (2006) and Lynn Viehl's "Evermore" (2008). In both cases the character's true nature is hidden from either the reader and/or other characters for a decent period of time.
  • The Outlaw Chronicles (2009-2020): Written by Angus Donald it features an absolutely terrifying version of Robin (the tagline for the first book is: "Meet the Godfather of Sherwood forest") and is narrated by an elderly Alan Dale (Alan-A-Dale by another name) who is writing his memoirs of his time as first an outlaw under Robin's command, then his right hand man/sworn swordsman/messenger/poet/and briefly assassin catcher. This series is notable for its darker themes, its very dark Robin who indulges in a human sacrifice to increase his mystique with the country folk, extremely loyal to those who are close to him, and doesn't consider those outside his circle to be real people, and so feels free to lie, cheat, steal and murder., the regular appearance of King Richard I (thus far the books are set either just before he takes the throne and during his reign), a large amount of historical accuracy and the writing style.
  • Hawksmaid (2010): Is a YA novel by Kathryn Lasky. It centres around a teenage Marian, who has a supernatural affinity for falcons, as she helps the young Robin Hood raise the money for King Richard's ransom.
  • Will in Scarlet (2013): Features Robin Hood as a drunk Broken Ace (although not without his better qualities) who becomes a figurehead for a young Will Scarlet's resistance group.
  • Sherwood Forest (2014-2015)
  • Sherwood (2019): A Megan Spooner's YA novel where Robin of Locksley is killed in the Crusades, and Marian ends up taking the role of Robin Hood.

    Live-Action TV 
  • Robin Hood (1953): First TV adaptation, lasted only one season and transmitted live. Most notable for the title role being played by Patrick Troughton. Yes, that one. All that is known to survive of this is an 8-minute excerpt from the second episode, which was included as a special feature on the DVD release of Troughton's first Doctor Who story, "The Power of the Daleks" (itself missing and reconstructed with animation).
  • In 1965 Not Only... But Also told us the tale of Alan-a-Dale.
  • In 1979, The Muppet Show season 3 episode 23 was a "theme episode", starring Kermit the Frog as Robin, guest star Lynn Redgrave as Marian (to Miss Piggy's annoyance, she was offered "Sister Tuck" instead), Fozzie Bear as Little John and the Great Gonzo as the Sheriff of Nottingham.
  • In 1982, impressionist Rich Little did a Robin Hood TV special in which he played all the roles.
  • Robin of Sherwood (1984-1986): An ITV series it was conceived and written by Richard Carpenter and it sought to infuse the legends with pagan mythology while at the same time striving for meticulous historical accuracy. Robin and the outlaws were portrayed as extremely young (mid-twenties at most), working at the behest of Herne the Hunter to keep a natural balance between the forces of good and evil. Despite only running for three seasons (twenty-six episodes in all), the show had a considerable impact on how subsequent adaptations handled the material. Its most influential and/or memorable creative choices included:
  • Depicting Robin Hood as a Secret Identity and Legacy Character known as "The Hooded Man", a persona that could be passed from one individual to another.
  • The serendipity of this concept when it came to writing out Robin's original actor Michael Praed (who abruptly quit the show at the end of season two) and introducing a new Robin played by Jason Connery. In a way this worked in the show's favour, as it allowed Carpenter to include the two very different origins of Robin Hood as found in the legends: one as a poor woodsman, the other as a wealthy nobleman, son of the Earl of Huntington.
  • Characterizing Maid Marion more as an Action Girl than a Damsel in Distress.
  • Introducing the popular idea of a Moorish/Saracen outlaw who joins Robin Hood's band.
  • Explicitly linking the name Will Scarlett with the idea of this character possessing a "scarlet" temper.
  • The rare move of giving King Richard as well as Prince John a Historical Villain Upgrade .
  • Making at least two important characters secret half-brothers, a conceit which also popped up in Kevin Costner's Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and the BBC's Robin Hood (BBC).
  • Its theme song, which put the band Clannad on the map.
  • The infamous silver arrow prop which looked like a dildo.
  • Robot of Sherwood (2014): episode from Doctor Who, it has the Twelfth Doctor meeting a classically-styled Robin Hood — much to the former's surprise, as he believes the latter to be naught but legend and traveled to the past expecting to prove as much to his companion Clara. The Doctor refuses to admit he might be wrong and is determined to figure out what's "really" going on, but they ultimately team up to foil the Sheriff of Nottingham, who is in league with alien robots.
  • Kamen Rider Ghost (2015): the protagonist can get aid from the spirits of various historical and folklore figures; Robin Hood is one of the first he receives with the help of a thief who holds a grudge against Corrupt Corporate Executives and was inspired by the legend of Robin to steal from them under the alias of "Little John". When Ghost uses Robin Hood's power, he gets a bow to fight with and the skill to use it.
  • Once Upon a Time (2011-2018): Robin appears as a minor character in the second and major character in the third and later seasons of the Disney Animated Canon live-action TV Massive Multiplayer Crossover .
  • Robyn Hood (2023): A series set in modern-day in the Canadian town of New Nottingham and featuring an African-Canadian cast (and a Gender Flip for the main character, named Robyn).
  • Robin Hood (2025-)

    Music 

    Tabletop games 
  • GURPS Robin Hood (1992): published by Steve Jackson Games, the first chapter of which was a detailed rundown of various interpretations of Robin and his allies and enemies for first edition GURPS. The rest of the book was assorted Setting Update and Recycled IN SPACE! versions of Robin, including the Ghost of the Moors (a Scottish Jacobite fighting a guerilla war against the English in GURPS Swashbucklers), Jackson Ryder/Split Arrow (a white man raised by and defending the natives in GURPS Old West), Edwin Washington/Lightbolt/Librum (a metahuman who juggles being a classic hero and a bow-themed vigilante in GURPS Supers), Robyn Lincoln (a crusading netrunner who deliberately models her online persona on Errol Flynn's Robin in GURPS Cyberpunk), and Kevin Neiborr (a Space Pirate who robs the corrupt Asteroid Mining corportation and gives to the desperate miners trying to pay off their contracts in GURPS Space).
  • In 2000, Dragon #274 had an entire Robin Hood campaign setting for Dungeons & Dragons, including a guide to the sort of adventures that would be appropriate, a gazetteer to 13th century Nottinghamshire, and NPC writeups for all the main characters in the legends, including Robin of Loxley (7th level ranger, 5th level rogue) and Robert of Huntingdon (8th level fighter, 2nd level rogue).

    Theatre 
  • In 1890, American composer Reginald DeKoven and prolific librettist Harry B. Smith had a notable hit with his comic opera, Robin Hood; a older song interpolated by Jessie Bartlett Davis in the Cross-Cast Role of Allan-a-Dale, "O Promise Me," enjoyed a Revival by Commercialization and would become a staple of weddings for a good seventy years thereafter. A decade or so later, DeKoven and Smith wrote a less successful sequel, Maid Marian.
  • The Heart of Robin Hood (2011): David Farr's play performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company in which Robin starts off the play as an ordinary brigand, with Maid Marion attempting to reform him.
  • Robin des Bois (2013), French musical written by Lionel Florence and Patrice Guirao and starring M. Pokora as Robin in which Robin and Marian's son and the Sheriff's daughter become Star-Crossed Lovers.
  • Ken Ludwig's Sherwood: The Adventures of Robin Hood (2017): a stage play that is a mostly comedic retelling of the legend which draws inspiration from many different adaptations, both modern and ancient. It notably creates a brand new character in the form of Deorwynn, a rebellious and strong-willed peasant girl who is the daughter of Much the Miller and the one who convinces Robin to stand up for the common man. It also features Friar Tuck as the show's Narrator who frequently and gleefully breaks the fourth wall to both address and snark at the audience.

    Video Games 
  • Robin of Sherwood (1985): A Text Adventure video game published as a licensed spin-off of the homonymous TV series.
  • Robin of Sherlock (1985): the ZX Spectrum comedy Text Adventure, a mash-up parody of the Robin of Sherwood game and the well-known contemporary Sherlock Text Adventure from Melbourne House, which bizarrely fused Robin Hood, Sherlock Holmes, and a whole lot of Pantomime characters into a shaggy-dog story about Moriarty impersonating Herne the Hunter.
  • Super Robin Hood (1986): An early Codemasters Platform Game originally developed by Phillip and Andrew Oliver (later of Dizzy fame) for the Amstrad CPC.
  • Defender of the Crown (1986): Amiga game that featured Robin as a recruitable ally three times in the course of gameplay; this was a selling point of the game.
  • Conquests of the Longbow (1991): Released by Sierra On-Line its a graphic adventure game in which one played as Robin Hood with various tasks centered around raising money for King Richard's ransom, thwarting the Sheriff of Nottingham, and saving innocent people from harm. It contained several mystical elements (such as wood sprites and the Green Man) and portrayed Marian as a "forest priestess."
  • The Adventures of Robin Hood (1991): Published by Millennium Interactive as an Action-Adventure Video Game.
  • Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves (1991)
  • Robin Hood: The Legend of Sherwood (2002): Produced by the German video games company Spellbound Games, its a stealth-based real-time strategy video game in the same vein as Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive in which the player controls a number of characters (Robin himself, Will Stutely, Will Scarlet, Little John, Maid Marian, and Friar Tuck) and faces a number of enemies (Guy of Gisbourne, Guillame de Longchamps (!), and Sir Scathlock of Derby), ultimately to fight the Sheriff of Nottingham and defeat Prince John's bid to usurp the throne.
  • Bobbin Of Lucasley (2003): LucasArts Fan Game and Affectionate Parody of Robin Hood that recreates the story of Robin (mostly based on the movies Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves and Robin Hood: Men in Tights) using characters from different LucasArts games.
  • Fate/EXTRA (2010): Features Robin Hood as an Archer-class servant. This version is explicitly a Legacy Character and has no connection with the usual characters of the legends.
  • Europe 1200 (2010): Mod for Mount & Blade, has Robin Hood among the potential party members. The potential party members also include Fulk FitzWarin and Roger Godberd, two English historical characters who have been speculated to have inspired the Robin Hood legend.
  • Hood: Outlaws and Legends (2021): A multiplayer game set in a Darker and Edgier version of the Robin Hood legend, consisting in playing the Merry Men to perform a heist. The playable characters are Robin Hood, maid Marian, Little John, and friar Tuck, respectively renamed Robin, Marianne, John, and Tooke.

    Web Shows 
  • Merry Maidens (2017): web series that gender flips Robin Hood and the Merry Men and reimagines them as college students who steal textbooks and give them to students who can't afford them.
  • Sherwood (2019): An animated series, follows a 14-year-old girl named Robin Loxley hacking and fighting her way through a cyberpunk dystopia. References abound to other retellings of the stories, and aside from being aged down, many of the characters are also genderbent (aside from Robin, Will Scarlet becomes a Fallen Princess named Rose, and Much the Miller's Son a Tagalong Kid named Juba) and racebent (including another black Little John, a cyborg named Gripper).

    Western Animation 
  • Robin Hood-Winked (1948): Casts Popeye as Robin Hood, with Bluto as the villainous Tax Collector and Olive as the barmaid.
  • Robin Hoodlum (1948): UPA shortnote  casts The Fox and the Crow as Robin (anticipating Disney's version by 25 years) and the Sheriff, respectively.
  • Rabbit Hood (1949): Bugs Bunny parody of Robin Hood. The short features the Sheriff of Nottingham as its antagonist, while Little John appears a few times to proclaim "Don't you worry, never fear. Robin Hood will soon be here." Some footage from the Errol Flynn film is used in the short.
  • Robin Hood Daffy (1958): A Looney Tunes short that features Daffy Duck as Robin Hood, trying to prove his identity to travelling friar Porky Pig.
  • Rocket Robin Hood (1966): A Space cartoon version by Krantz Films Inc. it was a Space Opera set in the year 3000. In one episode, the Robin of the future actually time travels and meets the real Robin.
  • In 1982 The Smurfs (1981) featured "The Adventures of Robin Smurf," in which Vanity Smurf played the conceited outlaw.
  • Alf Tales (1988-1989): the cartoon presented its version of Robin Hood (mainly parodying the 1938 film), with Gordon as Robin with a literal (swing) band of Merry Men; it features a Big Stick bout with a saxophone-wielding Little John, as well as a pumpkin-head-wearing Friar Tuck.
  • Young Robin Hood (1991): Cartoon series about Robin Hood and his merry men as teenagers. It was a co-production of, unusually, Hanna-Barbera and the Canadian animation firm Cinar (which later changed into Cookie Jar Entertainment).
  • In 2009, The Backyardigans had a Robin Hood-themed episode called Robin Hood the Clean, with resident Hot-Blooded penguin Pablo as Robin Hood. The episode, mind you, was about all the cleaning supplies getting locked in a dungeon and Pablo/Robin Hood trying to retrieve them.

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