History Main / AdaptationalAbomination

** ''Film/SpiderManFarFromHome'': Invoked and subverted with Sandman, Hydro-Man and Molten Man, who are portrayed by Mysterio as immortal beings who have inspired myths throughout history and are capable of ''destroying the entire planet'', but actually don't exist at all... at least in the incarnations he presents. Morris Bench, the "real" Hydro-Man, is mentioned to supposedly exist as a "mere" superpowered human.

** TheAntiChrist was originally [[spoiler: [[Characters/HarryPotterHarryJamesPotter Harry Potter]]]] before [[GoMadFromTheRevelation going insane after finding out that his whole life was a fabricated charade meant to groom him for the Apocalypse]]. Afterwards, he became [[HumanoidAbomination a grotesque giant with eyes littering his head like boils.]].

* In [[Myth/KingArthur Arthurian Legend]], Morgana le Fay was the half-sister of King Arthur and popular recurring villain to both the original stories and adaptations thereof, portrayed as either part fairy or an accomplished sorceress, sometimes on the same level of the Lady of the Lake. In ''WesternAnimation/{{Trollhunters}}'' however, she is much more of a threat than that. It is never made clear whether or not she was ever human, and while she is mentioned to be Merlin's apprentice, it is implied that she has been around long before him. She is indestructible, unstoppable at full-power, [[GreaterScopeVillain was responsible for the existence of every other villain in the series (if not directly, then by proxy)]] and she could not be killed, instead either be contained in amber ([[BrokeYourArmPunchingOutCthulhu at the cost of most of Merlin's magical reserves]]) and later within the Shadow Realm.
* ''WesternAnimation/Ben10UltimateAlien'': Dagon is revealed to be the identity of the dragon that Saint George fought. Unlike in the original legend the dragon is merely one form of a Cthulhu-like MultiversalConqueror who's mere visage is unpleasant to look at.
* Tokka from ''Film/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtlesIITheSecretOfTheOoze'' is a mutant who served the Shredder. However, in ''WesternAnimation/TeenageMutantNinjaTurtles2012'' he (or rather [[GenderFlip she]]) is portrayed as [[AnimalisticAbomination a giant volcanic alien tortoise]] known as one of the Six Cosmic Monsters of the Universe who guards a piece of the black hole generator and has no affiliation to Shredder and or Rahzar in this incarnation.
* In the comics, Ian Karkull is a guy with shadow powers. In ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries'', Karkull (no first name) is a Cthulhu-esque magical horror who turns the Daily Planet into a BiggerOnTheInside cavernous {{Hellgate}}. Anyone possessed by his minions, such as Lois and Jimmy, instantly turns into a monster. Oh, it gets [[SarcasmMode even more cheerful]]. The center is a BottomlessPit, or so we think. Well, when the tablet Karkull was sealed in falls down the pit and Superman has to chase it, we find it does have a bottom. The bottom has a ''mouth.'' The bottom is also ''rising,'' fast enough that ''Superman has to push himself to outfly it.'' It's hard to imagine a C-list villain like Ian as the master of all this, but his animated counterpart gave us some of the DCAU's best NightmareFuel.

* In ''Film/TheRitual'', one of the cultists in the film claims that the supernatural monster in the film is a Jotunn, more specifically a spawn of Loki. In Myth/NorseMythology, Jotunns are alternatively known as "Frost Giants". Interpretations of what Jotunns look like depend between adaptations, usually being pictured as being similar to humans and gods, but significantly larger, with other adaptations giving them [[AnIcePerson ice-based]] decor to them. Here though, the Jotunn is portrayed as an AnimalisticAbomination with the body of a large elk overgrown with plant matter, with the addition of protruding spines from the vertebrae and an additional set of human-like hands by her hips. Her head is far more monstrous, resembling a headless human torso with antlers for arms and arms for legs, with a vaguely human head with glowing eyes where its crotch would be. Its worth noting that the most well known Jotunn are Fenrir and his children (wolves) and Jormungandr (a giant snake), so an animalistic being is in line with Norse myths.

** ''Film/{{Doctor Strange|2016}}'': Dormammu was always a HumanoidAbomination, but [[ComicBook/DoctorStrange his comic version]] was still a recognizably humanoid EvilSorcerer. His film counterpart isn't even remotely humanoid beyond a face, and exists [[PlaceBeyondTime outside of time]] while he tries to assimilate universes into his Dark Dimension.
** ''Film/GuardiansOfTheGalaxyVol2'': While [[GeniusLoci Ego the Living Planet]] was quite powerful, the Ego of the film is more of a cosmic being despite having the ability to [[AFormYouAreComfortableWith take a human form]]. His true form is [[BrainMonster a giant glowing brain]] with the planet being something he formed for himself rather than just being a planet given consciousness. [[spoiler:He becomes more Lovecraftian [[EvilAllAlong when his true colors are revealed]], as his [[AssimilationPlot Expansion plot]] involves spreading pieces of himself to grow like tumors on planets.]]
** ''Film/SpiderManFarFromHome'': Invoked and subverted with Sandman, Hydro-Man and Molten Man, who are portrayed by Mysterio as immortal beings who have inspired myths throughout history and are capable of ''destroying the entire planet'', but actually don't exist at all... at least in the incarnations he presents; Morris Bench, the "real" Hydro-Man, is mentioned to supposedly exist as a "mere" superpowered human.
* ''Film/It2017'': In terms of presentation it is only downplayed with the titular Pennywise/It. While It was as much of an EldritchAbomination [[Literature/{{It}} in the books]], its traits are exaggerated and more overtly demonstrated in the 2017 adaptation. The original Pennywise was mostly capable of [[FauxAffablyEvil putting on the act of a flashy, friendly clown]], however Creator/BillSkarsgard's interpretation is more feral and [[ObviouslyEvil obviously monstrous]], rarely bothering to even act human. Pennywise is clearly inhuman from the get go, while in the books it only becomes apparent later on and the humanoid form is a very poor disguise that quickly falls off. The [[Film/ITChapterTwo second half]] plays with this; Pennywise never assumes the spider form of the book [[spoiler:only a clown headed spider form]], but more emphasis is given to the fact that It's true form are the [[LightIsNotGood deadlights]], a trio of lights akin to three suns.
* In ''Literature/JamesAndTheGiantPeach'', the rhinoceros which ate James's parents isn't really described as anything else other than just an animal (which makes it even more surreal in a way). In the live-action/animated film, it is a malevolent supernatural entity from beyond which manifests as a storm cloud shaped like a rhinoceros more closely related to the book's Cloud People.

* In ''VideoGame/DigitalDevilSaga'', Harley Q was a pathetic WarmUpBoss who's never mentioned again after his death. In ''Literature/QuantumDevilSagaAvatarTuner'', he becomes a NighInvulnerable, immortal BlobMonster and over the course of the story, he devours all the people to have ever died in the Junkyard, along with their HorrorHunger and despair. Eventually he - or rather, [[ItIsDehumanizing it]] - becomes an entity that is neither alive or dead, has no will on its own and is driven purely by hunger. It devours everyone in the Junkyard, including the Junkyard itself.
* In Myth/ClassicalMythology, Pan is a Satyr-like forest god known for his poor impulse control. In ''Literature/TheGreatGodPan'', he is a being that possesses the male lead, [[DidYouJustRomanceCthulhu rapes and impregnantes the female lead]] and [[BrownNoteBeing drives those who see his true form to madness]].
* Similarly, TheFairFolk are interpreted by Creator/ArthurMachen to be slimy horrors with tentacle extremities (''The Three Imposters'') or slug/snake like (''Literature/TheWhitePeople''). Either way they are impossibly ancient and teach horrible things or rape people (or both).

** The Foreigner-class Servants are historical people who made contact with the [[Literature/CthulhuMythos "Outer Gods"]] and manage to cling to their sanity, leaving them with some powers from the Outer Gods at their disposal. Currently none of them have connections to the eldritch in life (as far as anybody knows, anyway...) but the game's story explains how each of them came to be. Abigail Williams (famous for the Salem Witch Trial) was forced to become the host for Yog-Sothoth, while Katsushika Hokusai apparently gets contacted by what's implied to be Cthulhu, and his Trial Quest says that Abigail has inadvertently opened the way for more Outer Gods to "visit" the Earth.

* In the ''Franchise/{{Castlevania}}'' series, Dracula is more than just a powerful vampire. He is the commander of a seemingly endless army of demons, including the Grim Reaper himself, has various forms of powerful black magic at his disposal, including ResurrectiveImmortality, owns a castle [[GeniusLoci that itself is another demon]] and [[ChaosArchitecture is known for changing forms]], and he has the ability to [[OneWingedAngel turn into all sorts of demonic forms]]. In ''[[VideoGame/CastlevaniaChroniclesOfSorrow Chronicles of Sorrow]]'' duology, it's revealed that Dracula is also known as The Dark Lord, which is basically this universe's equivalent to {{Satan}}.

* In ''Film/TheRitual'', one of the cultists in the film claims that the supernatural monster in the film is a Jotunn, more specifically a spawn of Loki. In Myth/NorseMythology, Jotunns are alternatively known as "Frost Giants". Interpretations of what Jotunns look like depend between adaptations, usually being pictured as being similar to humans and gods, but significantly larger, with other adaptations giving them [[AnIcePerson ice-based]] decor to them. Here though, the Jotunn is portrayed as an AnimalisticAbomination with the body of a large elk overgrown with plant matter, with the addition of protruding spines from the vertebrae and an additional set of human-like hands by her hips. Her head is far more monstrous, resembling a headless human torso with antlers for arms and arms for legs, with a vaguely human head with glowing eyes where its crotch would be. Its worth noting that the most well known Jotunn are Fenrir and his children (wolves) and Jormungandr (a giant snek), so an animalistic being is in line with Norse myths.

* ''Film/It2017'': In terms of presentation it is only downplayed with the titular Pennywise/It. While It was as much of an EldritchAbomination [[Literature/{{It}} in the books]], its traits are exaggerated and more overtly demonstrated in the 2017 adaptation. The original Pennywise was mostly capable of [[FauxAffablyEvil putting on the act of a flashy, friendly clown]], however Creator/BillSkarsgard's interpretation is more feral and [[ObviouslyEvil obviously monstrous]], rarely bothering to even act human. Pennywise is clearly inhuman from the get go, while in the books it only becomes apparent later on and the humanoid form is a very poor disguise that quickly falls off. The [[Film/ITChapterTwo second half]] plays with this; Pennywise never assumes the spider form of the book [[spoiler:only a clown headed spider form]], but more emphasis is given to the fact that It's true form are the [[LightIsNotGood deadlights]], a massive of light akin to three suns.

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/ive_come_to_bargain.png]]

[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rsz_1ive_come_to_bargain.png]]

* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'': The legend of Saint George and the Dragon upgrades the dragon to a C'tan, a star vampire currently locked on Mars and implied to be the ''real'' Omnissiah worshiped by the Adeptus Mechanicus.

* ''Manga/{{Hellsing}}'': Alucard is revealed to be Dracula/Vlad the Impaler. The Dracula [[Literature/{{Dracula}} in the original novel]] was a powerful vampire, but otherwise a normal one. Alucard, however, is an UndeadAbomination who can shapeshift into a mass of angry darkness and eyes, and [[YourSoulIsMine has the souls of all his victims within him]].

* ''Film/It2017'': In terms of presentation and only downplayed with the titular Pennywise/It. While It was an EldritchAbomination [[Literature/{{It}} in the books]], its traits are exaggerated and more overtly demonstrated in the 2017 adaptation. The original Pennywise was mostly capable of [[FauxAffablyEvil putting on the act of a flashy, friendly clown]], however Creator/BillSkarsgard's interpretation is more feral and [[ObviouslyEvil obviously monstrous]], rarely bothering to even act human. Pennywise is clearly inhuman from the get go, while in the books it only becomes apparent later on. The [[Film/ITChapterTwo second half]] plays with this; Pennywise never assumes the spider form of the book [[spoiler:only a clown headed spider form]], but more emphasis is given to the fact that It's true form are the [[LightIsNotGood deadlights]], a massive of light akin to three suns and the humanoid form is a very poor disguise that quickly falls off.
* In ''Literature/JamesAndTheGiantPeach'', the rhinoceros which ate James's parents isn't really described as anything else other than just an animal (which makes it even more surreal in a way). In the live-action/animated film, it is a malevolent supernatural entity from beyond which manifests as a storm cloud shaped like a rhinoceros more closely related to the books Cloud People.

* ''Film/It2017'': Played with the titular Pennywise/It. While It was an EldritchAbomination [[Literature/{{It}} in the books]], these traits are exaggerated in the 2017 adaptation. The original Pennywise was mostly capable of [[FauxAffablyEvil putting on the act of a flashy, friendly clown]], however Creator/BillSkarsgard's interpretation is more feral and [[ObviouslyEvil obviously monstrous]], rarely bothering to even act human. Pennywise is clearly inhuman from the get go, while in the books it only becomes apparent later on. The [[Film/ITChapterTwo second half]] plays with this; Pennywise never assumes the spider form of the book [[spoiler:only a clown headed spider form]], but more emphasis is given to the fact that It's true form are the [[LightIsNotGood deadlights]], a massive of light akin to three suns.
* In ''Literature/JamesAndTheGiantPeach'', the rhinoceros which ate James's parents is really just an animal. In the live-action/animated film, it is a malevolent supernatural entity from beyond which manifests as a storm cloud shaped like a rhinoceros.

* ''Film/It2017'': Played with the titular Pennywise/It. While It was an EldritchAbomination [[Literature/{{It}} in the books]], these traits are exaggerated in the 2017 adaptation. The original Pennywise was mostly capable of [[FauxAffablyEvil putting on the act of a flashy, friendly clown]], however Creator/BillSkarsgard's interpretation is more feral and [[ObviouslyEvil obviously monstrous]], rarely bothering to even act human. Pennywise is clearly inhuman from the get go, while in the books it only becomes apparent later on. The [[Film/ITChapterTwo second half]] plays with this; Pennywise never assumes the spider form of the book [[spoiler:only a clown headed spider form]], but more emphasis is given to the fact that It's true form are the [[LightIsNotGood dead]][[LightEmUp lights]], a massive of light akin to three suns.

When a character with superpowers - be it scientific impossibilities, magic or ToonPhysics - is adapted into another type of media, sometimes an easy explanation for how they exist can be tricky. One such method is to explain that they are simply better than everyone else, and that includes you, dear reader!

[[folder: Anime and Manga]]

[[folder: Comic Books]]

* ''ComicBook/UltimateFantasticFour'' takes the inherent weirdness of Reed Richards' powers and really explores the possibilities. Nothing remains of his internal organs; he's basically a cluster of bacteria that looks human because that's what he's used to. This gets even more prominent [[spoiler: in his fight with Sue after his FaceHeelTurn]].

[[folder: Films -- Live-Action]]

** ''Film/DoctorStrange2016'': Dormammu was always a HumanoidAbomination, but [[ComicBook/DoctorStrange his comic version]] was still a recognizably humanoid EvilSorcerer. His film counterpart isn't even remotely humanoid beyond a face, and exists [[PlaceBeyondTime outside of time]] while he tries to assimilate universes into his Dark Dimension.

[[folder: Literature]]

[[folder: Live-Action TV]]
* ''Series/{{Kaamelott}}'': Meleagant was originally Guinevere's kidnapper in the tales of KingArthur. Here, he's some kind of HumanoidAbomination who visibly terrifies the Lady of the Lake just by existing, mind-controls people and corrupts Lancelot, implies he can't be killed, and seeks to drive Arthur to suicide. When asked what the hell he is, he identifies as the gods' answer to Arthur's sins (sleeping with a vassal knight's wife).

[[folder: Tabletop Games]]

[[folder: Video Game]]

** Tiamat of Myth/MesopotamianMythology here isn't just the goddess of PrimordialChaos - she's one of the [[EldritchAbomination Evils of Humanity aka Beasts]] and her nature as the ultimate MyBelovedSmother is brought front and center.

[[folder: Web Video]]

* ''WebVideo/AtopTheFourthWall'': [[spoiler: [[VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue Missingno]] is a video game glitch]] that while somewhat creepy, wasn't anything beyond that. The Entity by contrast is a universe-assimilating monster that's the most dangerous member of a pantheon of [[EldritchAbomination eldritch abominations]], and a threat to the entire multiverse. Lewis wrote it as such because [[spoiler: Missingno]] creeped him out as a kid, and represented this by making it a Lovecraftian monster.

[[folder: Western Animation]]

* In the comics, Ian Karkull is a guy with shadow powers. In ''WesternAnimation/SupermanTheAnimatedSeries,'' Karkull (no first name) is a Cthulhu-esque magical horror who turns the Daily Planet into a BiggerOnTheInside cavernous {{Hellgate}}. Anyone possessed by his minions, such as Lois and Jimmy, instantly turns into a monster. Oh, it gets [[SarcasmMode even more cheerful]]. The center is a BottomlessPit, or so we think. Well, when the tablet Karkull was sealed in falls down the pit and Superman has to chase it, we find it does have a bottom. The bottom has a ''mouth.'' The bottom is also ''rising,'' fast enough that ''Superman has to push himself to outfly it.'' It's hard to imagine a C-list villain like Ian as the master of all this, but his animated counterpart gave us some of the DCAU's best NightmareFuel.

* ''Film/It2017'': Played with the titular Pennywise/It. While It was an EldritchAbomination [[Literature/{{It}} in the books]], these traits are exaggerated in the 2017 adaptation. The original Pennywise was mostly capable of [[FauxAffablyEvil putting on the act of a flashy, friendly clown]], however Creator/BillSkarsgard's interpretation is more feral and [[ObviouslyEvil obviously monstrous]], rarely bothering to even act human. Pennywise is clearly inhuman from the get go, while in the books it only becomes apparent later on.

* In ''Film/TheRitual'', one of the cultists in the film claims that the supernatural monster in the film is a Jotunn, more specifically a spawn of Loki. In Myth/NorseMythology, Jotunns are alternatively known as "Frost Giants". Interpretations of what Jotunns look like depend between adaptations, usually being pictured as being similar to humans and gods, but significantly larger, with other adaptations giving them [[AnIcePerson ice-based]] decor to them. Here though, the Jotunn is portrayed as an AnimalisticAbomination with the body of a large elk overgrown with plant matter, with the addition of protruding spines from the vertebrae and an additional set of human-like hands by her hips. Her head is far more monstrous, resembling a headless human torso with antlers for arms and arms for legs, with a vaguely human head with glowing eyes where its crotch would be.

* ''VideoGame/FateGrandOrder'': Tiamat of Myth/MesopotamianMythology here isn't just the goddess of PrimordialChaos - she's one of the [[EldritchAbomination Evils of Humanity aka Beasts]] and her nature as the ultimate MyBelovedSmother is brought front and center.
** The Foreigner-class Servants are historical people who made contact with the [[Literature/CthulhuMythos "Outer Gods"]] and manage to cling to their sanity, leaving them with some powers from the Outer Gods at their disposal. As of this edit, none of them have connections to the eldritch in life (as far as anybody knew, anyway...) but the game's story explains how each of them came to be. Abigail Williams (famous for the Salem Witch Trial) was forced to become the host for Yog-Sothoth, while Katsushika Hokusai apparently gets contacted by what's implied to be Cthulhu, and his Trial Quest says that Abigail becoming Foreigner opens the way for more Outer Gods to "visit" the Earth.
*** In Myth/CelticMythology, Diarmuid ua Duibhne was killed by a demonic boar. This game shows that the boar was closer to an AnimalisticAbomination, who ''eats'' magic runes and strikes fear even to dragonkind.

** TheAntiChrist was originally [[spoiler: [[Characters/HarryPotterHarryJamesPotter Harry Potter]]]] before [[GoMadFromTheRevelation going insane after finding out that his whole life was a fabricated charade meant to groom him for the Apocalypse]]. Ever since, he became [[HumanoidAbomination a grotesque giant with eyes littering his head like boils hooked on anti-psychotics]].

SubTrope of EldritchAbomination. SuperTrope to {{Santabomination}}. See also AdaptationalBadass and AdaptationalVillainy.

* In ''Myth/ClassicalMythology'', Pan is a Satyr-like forest god known for his poor impulse control. In ''Literature/TheGreatGodPan'', he is a being that possesses the male lead, [[DidYouJustRomanceCthulhu rapes and impregnantes the female lead]] and [[BrownNoteBeing drives those who see his true form to madness]].

* In''Myth/ClassicalMythology'', Pan is a Satyr-like forest god known for his poor impulse control. In ''Literature/TheGreatGodPan'', he is a being that possesses the male lead, [[DidYouJustRomanceCthulhu rapes and impregnantes the female lead]] and [[BrownNoteBeing drives those who see his true form to madness]].

* In the Franchise/{{Castlevania}} series, Dracula is more than just a powerful vampire. He is the commander of a seemingly endless army of demons, including the Grim Reaper himself, has various forms of powerful black magic at his disposal, including ResurrectiveImmortality, owns a castle [[GeniusLoci that itself is another demon]] and [[ChaosArchitecture is known for changing forms]], and he has the ability to [[OneWingedAngel turn into all sorts of demonic forms]]. In [[VideoGame/CastlevaniaChroniclesOfSorrow the Chronicles of Sorrow duology]], it’s revealed that Dracula is also known as The Dark Lord, which is basically this universe’s equivalent to Satan.

[[folder: Films -- Animation]]
* Inverted in ''Disney/{{Frozen}}''; the Snow Queen from Hans Christian Andersen's original fairy tale ''Literature/TheSnowQueen'' was an omnipotent HumanoidAbomination who was implied to be the living embodiment of winter itself and possibly a member of TheFairFolk. In ''Frozen'', however, Queen Elsa is a human being born with the power to control ice and snow.
[[/folder]]