Frankenstein became very popular, particularly after Richard Brinsley Peake's dramatic adaptation in 1823. Throughout the nineteenth century, references to the novel appear in a great many novels and poems, sometimes in serious allusions, sometimes in facetious references. The following list is far from exhaustive.

The century-long success of the stage adaptations of Frankenstein made it a natural choice for filmmakers. The list of movies based, however indirectly, on Mary Shelley's novel stretches into the hundreds. The first film treatment of the novel was a seven-minute silent short from the Edison Film Company, entitled simply Frankenstein (1910). It was followed by a number of silent movies, including Life Without Soul (1915) and Il Mostro di Frankenstein (1920). But the silents were merely preludes to the explosion of cinematic Frankensteins.