A true story of courage and human dignity.
A Victorian surgeon rescues a heavily disfigured man being mistreated by his "owner" as a side-show freak. Behind his monstrous façade, there is revealed a person of great intelligence and sensitivity. Based on the true story of Joseph Merrick (called John Merrick in the film), a severely deformed man in 19th century London.
The Elephant Man (1980) is a drama and history film directed by David Lynch, released on October 9, 1980 with a runtime of 2h 4m. It stars Anthony Hopkins, John Hurt, Anne Bancroft and John Gielgud. Viewers rate it 8.1 out of 10 across 4,042 ratings.
Watch the official trailer for The Elephant Man before you stream it.
Official trailers, teasers, clips and featurettes for The Elephant Man.
Trailer
Trailer
Clip
Clip
Clip
Clip
Featurette
Featurette
Anthony Hopkins
as Frederick Treves
John Hurt
as John Merrick
Anne Bancroft
as Mrs Kendal
John Gielgud
as Carr Gomm
Wendy Hiller
as Mothershead
Freddie Jones
as Bytes
Michael Elphick
as Night Porter
Hannah Gordon
as Mrs Treves
Helen Ryan
as Princess Alex
John Standing
as Fox
Dexter Fletcher
as Bytes' Boy
Lesley Dunlop
as Nora
Directed by David Lynch, written by David Lynch, Christopher De Vore and Eric Bergren, produced by Jonathan Sanger.
Average viewer score of 8.1/10 from 4,042 ratings.
_**The ultimate outcast**_ In 1884 London, a doctor (Anthony Hopkins) meets Joseph Merrick, aka The Elephant Man (wrongly called John Merrick in the film) who was being exploited as a freak show attraction. Treves (Hopkins) tries to help Merrick (John Hurt) for the last six years of the latter’s life wherein he becomes cultured, but he inevitably remains an object of curiosity, to high society as well as low…
Reviewed on July 2, 2020
Saw this, recently up-converted to 4K at the London Film Festival and, apart from the clear improvements to the quality and detail of the image, I was reminded of just how good it is. Anthony Hopkins and Anne Bancroft play their roles with engaging sincerity - very ably supported by Sir John Gielgud and Dame Wendy Hiller. Prosthetics aside, John Hurt captures both the despair and optimism of Merrick with empathetic…
Reviewed on June 7, 2023
2004
2005
1941
2017
2025
1990
2022
2017
2020
2015
2020
1968
2004
2018
2018
2022
1982
1999
1992
2010
1962
1992
1959
1958
2018
2014
1982
2021
1980
2012
Movie
1991
1971
2002
1958
1972
1974
1966
1973
1999
The Elephant Man (1980) is available to stream on Criterion Channel, and to rent or buy from Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube and Fandango At Home. Streaming availability is checked against JustWatch data and can change by region.
The main cast of The Elephant Man (1980) includes Anthony Hopkins, John Hurt, Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud and Wendy Hiller. The film was directed by David Lynch. You can see the full cast and crew list, with character names, further up this page.
The Elephant Man was released on October 9, 1980 and runs for 2h 4m.
The Elephant Man (1980) holds an average rating of 8.1 out of 10 from 4,042 viewer votes, and is a good pick if you enjoy drama and history films. Read the viewer reviews on this page to decide for yourself.
Yes. The official The Elephant Man trailer is embedded in the trailer section of this page and plays instantly, no download or sign-up required.
