A Guide To Robin Hood On Screen

By Rachel West. 21 Nov 2018 11:20 AM

Taron Egerton is the latest actor to portray Sherwood Forest’s Robin Hood on screen. Take a peek at these actors who robbed from the rich to give to the poor well before him.

Kevin Costner In ‘Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves’

Warner Bros.

Columbia Pictures

Dreamworks

Errol Flynn In ‘The Adventures Of Robin Hood’

Warner Bros.

20th Century Fox

Cary Elwes In ‘Robin Hood: Men In Tights’

20th Century Fox

United Artists

Universal Pictures

Disney

HandMade Films

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Kevin Costner In ‘Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves’
Warner Bros.
Kevin Costner is clearly an American in Sherwood Forest but who cares when the movie delivers on everything else: Morgan Freeman as Robin Of Locksley’s trusty sidekick, ‘90s heartthrob Christian Slater as the angsty Will Scarlett, a Sean Connery cameo and Bryan Adams’ epic “Everything I Do (I Do It For You) to really bring it all home. Despite all of the flaming arrows, leather-studded jackets and everything else that belongs in an early 1990s blockbuster, it’s Alan Rickman’s over-the-top performance as the menacing Sheriff of Nottingham that steals the whole show.
Sean Connery In ‘Robin And Marian’
Columbia Pictures
Way before he cameoed as King Arthur in “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves”, Connery was a middle-aged Robin opposite Audrey Hepburn’s Marian in the 1976 film “Robin And Marian”. With Robin Hood’s days gallivanting through Sherwood Forest and a stint in the crusades behind him, there’s not much going on here plot-wise but who cares with this cast.
Vincent Cassel In ‘Shrek’
Dreamworks
The musical kidnapper of “Shrek”, Vincent Cassel’s French ‘Monsieur Hood’ is most notable for his hilarious song about kidnapping Fiona, proving that we really need more musical adaptations of “Robin Hood”.
Errol Flynn In ‘The Adventures Of Robin Hood’
Warner Bros.
1938's Technicolor epic “The Adventures Of Robin Hood” set the bar pretty high for all future takes on Robin Hood, with Errol Flynn’s portrayal of Robin Hood shaping pretty much every actor’s take on the character afterward. Handsome, charming and full of wit, this Robin Hood fronts an adventure-packed film that made over $4 million at the box office in a time when ticket prices were only 25 cents. Nominated for a Best Picture Oscar, the film took home three Academy Awards.
Patrick Bergin in 'Robin Hood'
20th Century Fox
1998 had two movies about asteroids (“Armageddon” and “Deep Impact”). 1997 saw volcanoes battle it out at the box office with “Volcano” and “Dante’s Peak”. In 1991, it was two movies about Sherwood Forest’s most famous resident. That’s right, the year saw not one but two movies about a guy in tights who robs from the rich to give to the poor with “Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves” and the simply titled “Robin Hood”. Unfortunately for Patrick Bergin and Uma Thurman, no one really cared about their version, which featured zero Bryan Adams ballads.
Cary Elwes In ‘Robin Hood: Men In Tights’
20th Century Fox
Leave it to Mel Brooks to bring not only the laughs but the green tights in his campy musical spoof with Cary Elwes. With the good looks of iconic Robin Hood actor Errol Flynn, the British Elwes is a natural fit in a chorus line of really merry men.
Douglas Fairbanks In ‘Robin Hood’
United Artists
A dashing Douglas Fairbanks delivered a huge hit with 1922’s silent feature “Robin Hood”. One of the most expensive films of the 1920s, with an estimated $1-million budget, “Robin Hood” was a smash hit with critics and audiences.

Fun fact: Capitalizing on Fairbanks’ star power, the movie was the first-ever to have a red carpet Hollywood premiere, which was held at the Egyptian Theater on Hollywood Blvd.
Russell Crowe In ‘Robin Hood’
Universal Pictures
Even though Guy Ritchie’s revisionist "Robin Hood" had a pretty great cast of Oscar winners – Russell Crowe! Cate Blanchett! William Hurt! – it really didn’t have much else going for it. Drab and dull, the Robin Hood origin story is really only notable for a particularly delightful performance by Oscar Isaac as the nasty Prince John.
Disney’s ‘Robin Hood’
Disney
The romantic anthropomorphic trouble-making fox is a Disney classic, even if it doesn’t tend to get the respect it deserves. The 1973 animated feature has plenty of action, laughs and memorable characters, not to mention songs. The film’s ballad “Love” was nominated for an Oscar but just try to get “Oo-De-Lally” or “Whistle Stop” (later remixed as “The Hampsterdance Song”) out of your head now.
John Cleese In ‘Time Bandits’
HandMade Films
Included in Terry Gilliam’s “Time Bandits” is a short spoof featuring John Cleese as Robin Hood. It’s a hilariously bizarre scene in which Cleese – clad in a bright green vest and feathered cap – hands out free goods to citizens…who are then rewarded with a punch in the face. The cameo was originally written for Gilliam’s other Monty Python partner Michael Palin but was instead offered to Cleese, whose greater star power helped appeal to financial investors.

A Guide To Robin Hood On Screen

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