"The Monkey's Paw" is a horror short story by English author W. W. Jacobs. It first appeared in Harper's Monthly in September 1902, and was reprinted in his third collection of short stories, The Lady of the Barge, later that year. In the story, three wishes are granted to the owner of an enchanted monkey's paw, but the wishes come with an enormous price for interfering with fate.

It has been adapted many times in other media, including plays, films, TV series, operas, stories and comics, as early as 1903. It was first adapted to film in 1915 as a British silent film directed by Sidney Northcote. The film (now lost) starred John Lawson, who also played the main character in Louis N. Parker's 1907 stage play.

  • A 1907 British stage adaptation by Louis N. Parker starred John Lawson.
  • A 1915 British silent film version was directed by Sidney Northcote and starred John Lawson (who was in the 1907 stage play).
  • A 1919 British silent film (director unknown) is known to have been made but is now considered lost.
  • The Monkey's Paw (1923 film) was a British film directed by Manning Haynes and starred Moore Marriott, Marie Ault, and Charles Ashton. until pictures from it were posted online in 2016; the existing copy is dubbed in French.
  • A 28 May 1946 episode of the BBC Radio series Appointment with Fear.
  • A 16 December 1958 episode of the British radio series Thirty-Minute Theatre, starring Carleton Hobbs and Gladys Young.
  • An episode of the 1970s British television series Orson Welles Great Mysteries.
  • The 1972 horror film Deathdream directed by Bob Clark was adapted from the story as an allegory to the Vietnam war by screenwriter Alan Ormsby.
  • An 11 July 1980 episode of the Canadian CBC Radio series Nightfall.
  • A 17 January 1988 BBC Radio adaptation by Patrick Galvin, presented as part of Fear on Four; rebroadcast individually as a Halloween special on 31 October 1993.
  • The 1991 pilot episode of the TV series Are You Afraid of the Dark? ("The Tale of the Twisted Claw") parodies the story.
  • A 1991 episode of the TV series The Simpsons ("Treehouse of Horror II", Season 3 Episode 7) has members of the Simpsons family making wishes using a cursed monkey's paw.
  • A 1993 episode named Taveez of the Indian television series The Zee Horror Show.
  • A 2008 Nepali film, Kagbeni, is a loose adaptation of the story.
  • A 2013 American film version with screenplay by Macon Blair, and directed by Brett Simmons.
  • A 2017 American opera, The Monkey's Paw, by composer Brooke deRosa, and produced by Pacific Opera Project.
  • The 2025 horror film Obsession, written and directed by Curry Barker, was partly inspired by the monkey's paw segment from The Simpsons episode "Treehouse of Horror II".

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Reception

The Nassau Literary Magazine praised "The Monkey's Paw" whilst reviewing The Lady of the Barge, comparing it to the works of Edgar Allan Poe and saying it was "calculated to give thrills and tremors to the most indifferent reader."

See also

  • Rabbit's foot
  • Unintended consequences
  • Hand of Glory
  • Three wishes

References

  • The Monkey's Paw; full short story text
  • The Monkey's Paw - Chilling Tales for Dark Nights; an unabridged narration performed by a full cast
  • The Monkey's Paw (2011); a faithful short film adaptation directed by Ricky Lewis Jr