15 Best Jane Eyre Film Adaptations, Ranked

Charlotte Brontë’s most popular work, Jane Eyre, published in 1847, has been adapted many times and in numerous ways, and the best Jane Eyre movies feature excellent performances. The novel’s discussion of Christianity, social class, feminism, and romance caused ripples when it was published that have lasted until today. Despite taking place in Victorian England, the story of a young woman’s journey towards independence and love is timeless and people can still connect to that story.

Unlike Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice or Emma, Jane Eyre hasn’t been adapted nearly as many times into movies. It did start with stage productions and radio plays before being adapted for the screen. Most of the best Jane Eyre movies adhere to the story presented in the novel, but there are some very interesting adaptations of the novel that take creative leaps. The biggest strength of the adaptations has been in the performances of the actors. Those who play Rochester and Jane have to have perfect chemistry, and these adaptations feature fantastic performances alongside their captivating stories.

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15 Jane Eyre (1910)

Starring Irma Taylor & Frank Hall Crane

The 1910 film adaptation of Jane Eyre is thought to be the first. It was produced less than 70 years after the debut of the novel. The novel made its debut much closer to the age of modern cinema than some fans might think. The silent movie is, at the very least, the first English-language version of the story on screen. It’s a relatively straightforward adaptation of the novel with many condensed parts of the plot summarized for the audience according to reviews from the time.

The film, unfortunately, is presumed lost today

It’s also one of the earliest silent movies in which the actors are credited on screen, something that wasn’t done in the early days of silent films. This Jane Eyre proved so popular that additional prints of the film were ordered by theaters. It saved Thanhouser Film Corporation at the time, a studio that found itself with very few successful moving pictures. The film, unfortunately, is presumed lost today.

14 Jane Eyre (1934)

Starring Virginia Bruce & Colin Clive

The 1934 version was the first “talkie” adaptation. Monogram Pictures, a small production company at the time, did the best they could on a relatively small budget. Jane never visits her dying aunt or runs away to Moor House, but the audience at least gets to see her childhood at Gateshead and a brief scene at Lowood. This is one version where much of the story is changed to fit Hollywood’s idea of a fairy tale.

Jane is beautiful, talented, and accomplished, while Rochester is kind and paternal. Those who like the story of Jane Eyre but wish it were more upbeat and less gothic may enjoy this particular version. Virginia Bruce stars as Jane while Dr. Frankenstein himself, Colin Clive, stars as Edward Rochester. Film critic Leonard Maltin said the movie wasn’t really worth seeking out for anything more than a curiosity to see the first talkie version of the Charlotte Brontë novel (via TCM).

13 Jane Eyre (1949)

Starring Mary Sinclair & Charlton Heston

This made-for-television version, which aired on CBS, was limited by time constraints and being filmed on one set. This was part of the Studio One American TV series. The series started out on radio before moving to television in 1948, making this one of the first versions of the story to make it to the small screen. Studio One took several books and transported them to the small screen in television show-sized adaptations. That is what happened with the 1949 version of Jane Eyre.

This inevitably led to the removal of some major plot points from the book, such as Jane’s time at Gateshead and Moor House. The only time anyone sees Lowood is during a brief scene at the start of the film where Jane indignantly states that she has been mistreated and will never return. The most enjoyable elements of this adaptation are Charlton Heston as Rochester and the wife in the attic. This also wasn’t the only time that Studio One adapted Jane Eyre.

12 Jane Eyre (1957)

Starring Joan Elan & Patrick Macnee

Another television adaptation arrived in 1957, this time from NBC. This was part of NBC Matinee Theater, which ran daily and offered live dramas with minimal sets and costumes. That means that a lot of what makes Jane Eyre special was not on display in this series. This adaptation leaves out any plot points that don’t take place at Thornfield. Much of the plot is shifted around, likely due to time constraints.

For example, rather than being interrupted at the altar, Rochester is in the middle of his proposal when Mason storms in and demands he tell Jane about Bertha. In this Jane Eyre, Rochester is a creepy alcoholic who leers after Jane, and Jane is much less plain than she is described in the novel. Mrs. Fairfax plays a larger role here, serving as Rochester’s confidante about Bertha and helping him keep his secret. Some of the choices can seem a bit bizarre for fans of the novel, but they are entertaining nevertheless.

11 Sangdil (1952)

Starring Madhubala & Dilip Kumar

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The first known Hindi-language adaptation of Jane Eyre, the movie took some liberties with the source material but stayed true to the bones of the story. It featured beloved Indian star Madhubala in the leading role opposite Dilip Kumar, whom she had a real-life relationship with for many years. This aided in their chemistry on screen. Shankar and Kamla are childhood sweethearts separated at a young age, but who reunite later and enjoy a romance, albeit with dark secrets.

While some critics said that this particular adaptation was boring, Sandgil formed the basis for several other Indian adaptations of Jane Eyre that would follow. It also paved the way for numerous other adaptations in different languages in India, like a Tamil and a Telugu adaptation in the 1970s. The film received mixed reviews when it was released, but that didn’t matter because it was a huge success when released in theaters, the seventh highest-grossing movie of 1952 for India.

10 SCTV’s Jane Eyrehead (1982)

Starring Andrea Martin & Joe Flaherty

While not a movie and not a full-length television adaptation either, “Jane Eyrehead” deserves a spot among the best Jane Eyre adaptations for its creativity alone. Crafted by the Second City Comedy Troupe for television, the sketch parodies Jane Eyre at a time when the BBC was adapting one classic after another for TV movies and miniseries.

In addition to Andrea Martin and Joe Flaherty as the leads, the sketch features John Candy, Eugene Levy, and Martin Short. It also takes the story of Jane Eyre from her usual manor home to the set of Benny Hill, a popular series at the time. Of course, this is nothing more than a spoof, but it isn’t making fun of Jane Eyre. Instead, it pokes fun at the BBC’s efforts at releasing countless adaptations of older novels, often bringing more than one adaptation of each novel in short order throughout the years.

9 Jane Eyre (1970)

Starring Susannah York & George C. Scott

Skipping Gateshead and going straight to Lowood, this version still manages to show the harsh beginnings of Jane’s childhood, though many other elements of the plot are condensed. This is the first version to show Jane’s time at Moor House, and it includes the proposal from St. John, both being important story elements that often get left out by other adaptations. However, this portrayal of the central romance between Jane and Rochester was not brimming with passion.

Still, Susannah York and George C. Scott capture some of the most central elements of their characters. Perhaps the greatest feature of this adaptation is John Williams’ instantly memorable score. Williams scored this movie just one year after he picked up two Oscar nominations (Goodbye, Mr. Chips and The Reivers) and one year before he scored Fiddler on the Roof. Williams went on to win an Emmy for Outstanding Achievement in Music Composition for Jane Eyre.

8 Jane Eyre (1997)

Starring Samantha Morton & Ciarán Hinds

Everything but Jane’s trip to Gateshead to visit her dying aunt is included in this ITV romance adaptation. Ciarán Hinds’ take on Rochester certainly stands out among the others, and fans of the novel either love or hate this particular portrayal. Hinds often chooses to play Rochester as aggressive and abrasive, raising his voice frequently to convey Rochester’s passionate nature.

Both Jane (played by Samantha Morton) and Rochester certainly fit their physical descriptions in the book, both in terms of age and physical features. This adaptation also included appearances by Gemma Jones, David Gant, and Abigail Cruttenden and was part of the massive output of classic adaptations in the 1990s from Britain, which also includes 1995’s Pride and Prejudice, 1996’s Emma and 1997’s Ivanhoe. While this movie doesn’t stand up as well to some of those, it remains a solid outing.

7 I Walked With A Zombie (1943)

Starring Betsy Connell & Tom Conway

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This horror movie for RKO Pictures is a very loose adaptation of Jane Eyre. It’s based on an article by Inez Wallace but uses her story to reinterpret the events of the Charlotte Brontë novel, and is one of the more unique takes on the story. I Walked With a Zombie follows a nurse as she takes a job caring for the sick wife of a sugar plantation owner in the Caribbean. Though it initially received mixed reviews when it was released, film scholars have changed their tune in the modern day.

Critics cite it as one of the earliest movies to have a thoughtful approach to its depiction of voodoo practices on screen and highlighting the African diaspora more authentically. This is also a very important movie in horror cinema. Produced by Val Lewton, this was one of the movies Lewton wanted to show horror in a serious manner compared to the Universal Monsters releases. The movie is also one of the earliest portrayals of zombies before they became the Walking Dead.

6 Jane Eyre (1983)

Starring Zelah Clarke & Timothy Dalton

Of all the Jane Eyre movies, the 1983 version is by far the most faithful to the source material. Technically a television limited series, this version spans 11 episodes and details the events of every chapter of the novel. It features the most detail of the Jane Eyre adaptations, which fans will surely appreciate. Because of the length of this adaptation, Jane and Rochester’s relationship is given plenty of time to grow.

For novel purists who want to see an adaptation that is the novel translated to the screen, this is the version for them. However, this is also extremely long, checking in at 239 minutes in total, which is just under four hours. Timothy Dalton (formerly James Bond) stars as Edward while Zelah Clarke takes on the role of Jane Eyre. It originally aired on BBC1 and was a weekly show, running from October to December 1983.

5 Jane Eyre (1996)

Starring Charlotte Gainsbourg & William Hurt

As a single young woman with no fortune, the world will not react kindly to strong displays of emotion on her part

Directed by Franco Zeffirelli, this version offers a somewhat muted take on the classic tale. Anna Paquin plays young Jane, exquisitely capturing her defiant spark and temper. Charlotte Gainsbourg plays Jane as an adult. She is still passionate, but this side of her nature is tempered by her experiences at Lowood and her knowledge that, as a single young woman with no fortune, the world will not react kindly to strong displays of emotion on her part.

This was only Paquin’s second movie role following her Oscar-winning performance in 1993’s The Piano. At 14, she was still four years away from her true breakout as Rogue in the X-Men franchise. As for Gainsbourg, this was one of her biggest roles at the time, shooting the movie when she was 25. With Elliam Hurt as Edward, the cast was top-notch, and critics liked what they saw, offering it a 75% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

4 National Theatre Live: Jane Eyre (2015)

Starring Madeleine Worral & Felix Hayes

One of the great things about the UK’s National Theatre productions is that sometimes productions are recorded for broadcast. In the case of Jane Eyre, a 2015 version of the stage show was recorded and broadcast in theaters, but it was also saved and made available for streaming as part of the National Theatre at Home program.

It’s longer than most Jane Eyre movie adaptations at 3 hours and 20 minutes, but shorter than most miniseries would be, meaning that it has ample details that might be removed from the shorter adaptations. It employs clever uses of the theater stage, including ladders and equipment to make scenes work that other productions might have tried to hide away. This is the best bet for anyone who wants to see Jane Eyre as a stageplay, but can’t view it in an actual theatre.

3 Jane Eyre (1943)

Starring Joan Fontaine & Orson Welles

Jane Eyre is a gothic romance, but many adaptations treat it as a classic period piece and ignore the gothic elements. However, this movie offers the best of both worlds. With long shadows and stark black-white contrast, the locations feel the way they are described in the book in the 1943 Jane Eyre movie. Lowood feels lonely and oppressive, while Thornfield feels truly haunted by secrets bordering on the supernatural.

Orson Welles gives a fantastic performance as Rochester, commanding every scene he is in. The actor’s larger-than-life screen presence is perfect for the character and the story. He’s one of the best Rochesters of any adaptation. It is impressive to consider that Welles starred in the movie just two years after his masterful performance in Citizen Kane and one year after serving as the narrator for Journey Into Fear. He proved at this time he was just as good of an actor as he was a director.

2 Jane Eyre (2006)

Starring Ruth Wilson & Toby Stephens

Jane Eyre (2006) 0

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Jane Eyre is a 2006 television adaptation of Charlotte Brontë’s novel, starring Ruth Wilson as the titular character and Toby Stephens as Edward Rochester. Directed by Susanna White, the series follows the life of an orphaned girl who becomes a governess and falls in love with her mysterious employer. This four-part drama explores themes of love, morality, and redemption, capturing the essence of the classic Victorian novel.

Cast Ruth Wilson , Toby Stephens , Cosima Littlewood , Georgie Henley , Tara Fitzgerald , Pam Ferris , Claudia Coulter , Christina Cole , Grace MacIntyre Release Date October 15, 2006

The 2006 Jane Eyre movie is another version that aired as a television miniseries on BBC. These four episodes cover everything in the novel, from Gateshead to Moor House. Scenes with Jane and Rochester pulse with romance and mystery, and the chemistry between Ruth Wilson and Toby Stephens is undeniable. Certain changes are made to the dialogue in an attempt to modernize the story for newer audiences, and these changes may not work for everyone.

However, between Wilson’s wonderful performance and the strength of the central love story, this version certainly does justice to Brontë’s story. Stephens, who went on to star in the TV show Black Sails, was also a great Mr. Rochester, playing perfectly off Wilson. The four episodes total 240 minutes, which is just at four hours in running time, allowing this Jane Eyre to tell every part of this sprawling epic story. It went on to win three Primetime Emmy Awards and one BAFTA TV Award.

1 Jane Eyre (2011)

Starring Mia Wasikowska & Michael Fassbender

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Jane Eyre is a 2011 romance film from director Cary Fukunaga. Jane Eyre stars Mia Wasikowska, a governess named Jane who discovers her employeer is hiding a dark secret. Alongside Wasikowska is Michael Fassbender as Edward Rochester and Jamie Bell as St. John Rivers. The film is based on Charlotte Brontë’s novel of the same name.

Director Cary Joji Fukunaga Release Date April 22, 2011 Cast Mia Wasikowska , Michael Fassbender , Jamie Bell , Su Elliot , Holliday Grainger , Tamzin Merchant , judi dench Runtime 120 Minutes

Each version of a Jane Eyre movie has its strengths, but no other has captured the essence of the novel the way that the 2011 version has. Director Cary Fukunaga and screenwriter Moira Buffini make the brilliant decision to begin the movie with Jane fleeing Thornfield. The rest of the story — Jane’s childhood, her romance with Rochester, and her attempted marriage — is told through flashbacks. This improves the pacing of the film and keeps the audience engaged.

Though many actors put their spin on these characters, this cast cannot be matched. Michael Fassbender is a perfect Rochester. Meanwhile, Judi Dench and Jamie Bell, as well as the rest of the supporting cast, give great performances. Mia Wasikowska is the star, and perhaps the greatest strength of this adaptation is the way it is so clearly meant to be Jane’s story. Wasikowska’s performance is perfect in every scene, capturing the nuances and contradictions of the iconic character. The 2011 adaptation is the best Jane Eyre movie.

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Category: Entertainment