Every Single Tarzan Movie (In Order Of Release)

Though many audiences will be familiar with Disney’s Tarzan or the 2016 film The Legend of Tarzan, the classic story has actually been adapted to film dozens of times. The character was conceived by writer Edgar Rice Burroughs, who published the first Tarzan novel in 1914. From there, he wrote several sequels, and it wasn’t long before the first movie was made about the infant English lord raised by apes. From there, a new version of Tarzan appeared on the screen decade after decade, proving that Burroughs’ books were simply meant to be turned into movies.

There’s certainly something fascinating about the idea of a boy raised entirely by animals. In the classic story of Tarzan, an English lord and his wife, John and Alice Clayton, become stranded with their infant son after their ship wrecks off the coast of Africa. They build a cabin there, but after Alice dies from illness and John is killed by a massive ape, their young son, John Clayton III, is abandoned. Fortunately, he is taken in by a female ape, who raises and cares for him as her own. It has become a tale as old as time, and the story has been repeated and expanded into several films carrying the name Tarzan.

Every Tarzan Movie In Order Of Release Date

The first Tarzan movie was brought to the screen only four years after Burroughs had his first novel published, and was titled Tarzan of the Apes. This was a silent film, and a handful of pictures of the same format followed it. Many years later, in 1932, the first Tarzan movie was produced with sound, and this began a franchise of films. A new movie following the character was released nearly every year until the 1970s when no new adaptations were made for over a decade. However, 1981 saw the character’s return, and a couple of Tarzan movies have been released every decade since.

• Tarzan of the Apes (1918)
• The Revenge of Tarzan (1920)
• The Son of Tarzan (1920)
• Adventures of Tarzan (1921)
• Tarzan and the Golden Lion (1927)
• Tarzan the Mighty (1928)
• Tarzan the Tiger (1929)
• Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)
• Tarzan the Fearless (1933)
• Tarzan and His Mate (1934)
• The New Adventures of Tarzan (1935)
• Tarzan Escapes (1936)
• Tarzan’s Revenge (1938)
• Tarzan Finds a Son! (1939)
• Tarzan’s Secret Treasure (1941)
• Tarzan’s New York Adventure (1942)
• Tarzan Triumphs (1943)
• Tarzan’s Desert Mystery (1943)
• Tarzan and the Amazons (1945)
• Tarzan and the Leopard Woman (1946)
• Tarzan and the Huntress (1947)
• Tarzan and the Mermaids (1948)
• Tarzan’s Magic Fountain (1949)
• Tarzan and the Slave Girl (1950)
• Tarzan’s Peril (1951)
• Tarzan’s Savage Fury (1952)
• Tarzan and the She-Devil (1953)
• Tarzan’s Hidden Jungle (1955)
• Tarzan and the Lost Safari (1957)
• Tarzan’s Fight for Life (1958)
• Tarzan’s Greatest Adventure (1959)
• Tarzan, the Ape Man (1959)
• Tarzan the Magnificent (1960)
• Tarzan and the Trappers (1960)
• Tarzan Goes to India (1962)
• Tarzan’s Three Challenges (1963)
• Tarzan and the Valley of Gold (1966)
• Tarzan and the Great River (1967)
• Tarzan’s Jungle Rebellion (1967)
• Tarzan and the Jungle Boy (1968)
• Tarzan’s Deadly Silence (1970)
• Tarzan the Ape Man (1981)
• Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (1984)
• Tarzan and the Lost City (1998)
• Tarzan of the Apes (1998)
• Tarzan (1999)
• Tarzan & Jane (2002)
• Tarzan 2: The Legend Begins (2005)
• The Legend of Tarzan (2016)

The Silent Tarzan Movies (1918 – 1929)

The silent Tarzan movies were the first to bring the ape-man to the screen, though he wouldn’t have a voice for more than a decade later. The first film released in 1918 was a book-faithful adaptation of Burroughs’ story, with actor Elmo Lincoln serving as the first adult Tarzan on screen. Lincoln returned for two more films before actors P. Dempsey Tabler and James Pierce took their turns playing the classic character. The last silent Tarzan movie, Tarzan the Tiger (1929), was dubbed over with sound prior to its release, but it is still typically lumped in with the others since it was initially filmed without sound.

• Tarzan of the Apes (1918)
• The Revenge of Tarzan (1920)
• The Son of Tarzan (1920)
• Adventures of Tarzan (1921)
• Tarzan and the Golden Lion (1927)
• Tarzan the Mighty (1928)
• Tarzan the Tiger (1929)

The Tarzan Franchise Films (1932 – 1970)

The longest batch of Tarzan movies was released over a span of 40 years, with a new film released almost yearly. The first and most popular of these, Tarzan the Ape Man (1932), started Tarzan’s story over again and included the iconic dialogue between the titular ape man and Jane when they first met (something repeated through many popular adaptations). From here, 33 more films were released, each taking Tarzan on a new adventure. The actors who played the lead character throughout this franchise were Johnny Weissmuller, Lex Barker, Gordon Scott, Jock Mahoney, Mike Henry, and Ron Ely.

• Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)
• Tarzan the Fearless (1933)
• Tarzan and His Mate (1934)
• The New Adventures of Tarzan (1935)
• Tarzan Escapes (1936)
• Tarzan’s Revenge (1938)
• Tarzan Finds a Son! (1939)
• Tarzan’s Secret Treasure (1941)
• Tarzan’s New York Adventure (1942)
• Tarzan Triumphs (1943)
• Tarzan’s Desert Mystery (1943)
• Tarzan and the Amazons (1945)
• Tarzan and the Leopard Woman (1946)
• Tarzan and the Huntress (1947)
• Tarzan and the Mermaids (1948)
• Tarzan’s Magic Fountain (1949)
• Tarzan and the Slave Girl (1950)
• Tarzan’s Peril (1951)
• Tarzan’s Savage Fury (1952)
• Tarzan and the She-Devil (1953)
• Tarzan’s Hidden Jungle (1955)
• Tarzan and the Lost Safari (1957)
• Tarzan’s Fight for Life (1958)
• Tarzan’s Greatest Adventure (1959)
• Tarzan, the Ape Man (1959)
• Tarzan the Magnificent (1960)
• Tarzan and the Trappers (1960)
• Tarzan Goes to India (1962)
• Tarzan’s Three Challenges (1963)
• Tarzan and the Valley of Gold (1966)
• Tarzan and the Great River (1967)
• Tarzan’s Jungle Rebellion (1967)
• Tarzan and the Jungle Boy (1968)
• Tarzan’s Deadly Silence (1970)

Tarzan The Ape Man (1981)

In 1981, Tarzan’s story was again reset to the beginning with Tarzan and the Ape Man. The movie was directed by John Derek and starred Miles O’Keeffe as Tarzan, Bo Derek as Jane Porter, and Richard Harris as her father. The 1981 version of Tarzan the Ape Man is often regarded as the worst of the movies based on Burroughs’ iconic character and sometimes even one of the worst movies ever made. Despite this, the film managed a successful stint at the box office, bringing in $37 million gross in the United States and Canada.

GreyStone: The Legend Of Tarzan, Lord Of the Apes (1984)

This 1984 movie is widely considered one of the best of the Tarzan movies. Directed by Hugh Hudson and starring Christopher Lambert (Highlander) as Tarzan and Andie MacDowell (Four Weddings and a Funeral) as Jane, GreyStone: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes was nominated for three Oscars during the 57th Academy Awards, making it the first Tarzan adaptation to be nominated. Despite the impressive critical reception, this Tarzan movie grossed only slightly more than its 1981 predecessor, bringing in $45.9 million.

Tarzan & The Lost City (1998)

Over a decade after the success of the 1984 Tarzan movie, another flop hit the theaters. Tarzan and the Lost City was directed by Carl Schenkel and starred Casper Van Dien (Starship Troopers) as Tarzan and Jane March (The Lover) as Jane Porter. This film was approached like a sequel to the original Tarzan story, but the unique premise didn’t impress critics. Though not as infamous as the 1981 Tarzan the Ape Man, Tarzan and the Lost City has the lowest box office numbers at only $2 million gross.

Tarzan Of The Apes (1999)

Tarzan of the Apes is a 1999 animated film that is often overlooked. It was a direct-to-video release produced by Diane Eskenazi and Darcy Wright. The voice cast for Tarzan of the Apes was never credited, and since the film didn’t hit theaters, it isn’t easy to quantify its financial success. Additionally, since it was released just before the highly popular Tarzan movie by Disney, this animated film went largely unnoticed by audiences.

Disney’s Animated Tarzan Movies (1999-2005)

Perhaps the most memorable movie based on Burroughs’ novels, Disney’s animated film Tarzan is regarded as a House of Mouse classic. The film was directed by Kevin Lima and Chris Buck and starred Tony Goldwyn as Tarzan and Minnie Driver as Jane Porter, with several other prominent stars, such as Rosie O’Donnell, Glenn Close, Brian Blessed, and Lance Henriksen, lending their voices to the supporting characters. Tarzan is also memorable for its soundtrack from Phil Collins, which earned the film an Academy Award.

Disney’s Tarzan was followed by two direct-to-video sequels, Tarzan & Jane (2002), which explored the couple’s life together in Africa after the original film’s end, and Tarzan II, set during the character’s childhood. Both films are regarded as critical failures.

• Tarzan (1999)
• Tarzan & Jane (2002)
• Tarzan II (2005)

The Legend Of Tarzan (2016)

The Legend of Tarzan is the most recent film adaptation based on Burroughs’ novels. Directed by David Yates and starring Alexander Skarsgård as Tarzan and Margot Robbie as Jane, the 2016 movie is another that explores Tarzan’s story after his initial departure from Africa. The Legend of Tarzan is considered a box office bomb, only managing $231 million domestically. However, the movie has since found new life on Netflix, coming out #1 for the week of January 15, 2024—proving there is always room for more Tarzan movies in the future.