Line #178 Main/AdaptationSpeciesChange


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11	You read a book about a hero and his faithful pet, but when the book is adapted to film, the hero's pet has been changed into a different species. This is what's known as an Adaptation Species Change.
12
13	In the case of domestic animals, especially dogs, there can be an adaptation breed change.
14
15	May be part of PragmaticAdaptation in live action movies and TV shows if the original species was either rare, dangerous, just not easy to work with, there was something else similar handy instead, or the original species was fictional to begin with.
16
17	This trope may also apply with the live-action adaptation of a work which has a TalkingAnimal character, with said animal turned into a human, specially in adaptations for theatre or low budget movies that can't count on CGI or animatronics.
18
19	See also DubSpeciesChange, when this happens in a dub of a work rather than a new adaptation. Compare: AdaptationNameChange, AdaptationDyeJob, AnthropomorphicAnimalAdaptation, and RaceLift, where the character remains the same species (human), but a different type of human. Can be the result of {{Demythification}} and DoingInTheWizard if the adaptation is trying to be more "realistic" than the work it was based off.
20
21	Not to be confused with AlternateSpeciesCounterpart, where a new character is created in the same canon by changing the species of an existing character.
22
23	----
24	!!Example subpages:
25
26	[[index]]
27	* AdaptationSpeciesChange/ComicBooks
28	** [[AdaptationSpeciesChange/UltimateMarvel Ultimate Marvel]]
29	* AdaptationSpeciesChange/FanWorks
30	* [[AdaptationSpeciesChange/LiveActionFilms Films — Live-Action]]
31	* AdaptationSpeciesChange/LiveActionTV
32	* AdaptationSpeciesChange/WesternAnimation
33	[[/index]]
34
35	!!Other examples:
36
37	[[foldercontrol]]
38
39	[[folder:Advertising]]
40	* ''Advertising/LouieTheFly'': The ads for the products meant for India and Malaysia change Louie into a mosquito instead of a fly, due to the stronger [[TalkingPest dangers of mosquito-borne illnesses]] there. No part of his design is changed to be different, contrasting him from other mosquitos animated for the ads, who resemble the insect closer--though they usually wear tank tops for some reason.
41	* In the Toyota [=ReBorn=] commercials which feature the cast of ''Manga/{{Doraemon}}'', Doraemon is Creator/JeanReno instead of an anthropomorphic robot cat.
42	* The 80s iteration of Advertising/{{Freakies}} cereal turned the Freakies, originally monsters in their original 70s designs, into aliens. Retro-skewing merchandise and extended bios would return them to being monsters, ignoring the alien phase altogether.
43	[[/folder]]
44
45	[[folder:Anime & Manga]]
46	* In the original ''Anime/BubblegumCrisis'', [[spoiler:Mackie was human. ''Tokyo 2040'' changes him into a Boomer.]]
47	* In the original ''Anime/CuteyHoney'' series, Cutey Honey herself was a RidiculouslyHumanRobot. In the {{Shoujo}} adaptation ''Cutey Honey Flash'', she is a human.
48	* ''Manga/GingaNagareboshiGin'':
49	** In the manga, Rin is a Japanese pine marten that attacks the Kai brothers when they're puppies, wounding them before Ben rescues them. But in the anime adaptation, Rin is a feral dog instead.
50	** Downplayed by breed in the sequel manga ''Anime/GingaDensetsuWeed'', where there are two English Foxhounds that trail Weed and his pack only to get killed off by Jerome. In the anime, they got changed to Doberman Pinscher brothers named Thunder and Lector. But there is a hint of the Foxhounds still being used over from the manga, one reporting to Hougen that Jet and Missile the Borzois (Rocket's brothers) had failed in their mission to assassinate Weed.
51	* The Franchise/{{Godzilla}} of ''Anime/GodzillaPlanetOfTheMonsters'' is a {{Planimal}}, not a dinosaur like most other versions.
52	* In the OVA of ''Anime/KujibikiUnbalance'', Alex is a human character. In the TV series, he's a dog (and also the current student council secretary).
53	* ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'':
54	** One of the first ''Manga/TheLegendOfZelda'' manga was loosely based on [[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI the first game]]. The lore of the series was not as elaborate as it later became, and thus the Hylians are referred to as elves. In [[Manga/TheLegendOfZeldaI manga]], Link is a half-elf half-human child instead of (presumably) being full Hylian.
55	** ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast'': The [[ComicBook/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast1992 comic]] and [[Manga/TheLegendOfZeldaALinkToThePast2005 manga]] adaptations depict the Hyrule soldiers not as possessed humans, but as monsters or suits of AnimatedArmor.
56	* ''Franchise/LyricalNanoha'':
57	** Most of the {{Human Alien}}s and {{Artificial Human}}s were changed into normal humans in ''Manga/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaInnocent''. Yuuno, Zafira, Arf, and Linith were changed to be ordinary pets (Linith was a DecompositeCharacter who appeared as both a human and a cat).
58	** The Florian sisters from ''[[VideoGame/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaAsPortable Gears of Destiny]]'' were changed from {{Ridiculously Human Robot}}s to {{Human Alien}}s injected with nanobots in ''[[Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaReflection Reflection]]''.
59	** In the games, the Materials were artificial constructs designed to guard Yuri, similar to the Wolkenritter's role for Hayate. In ''[[Anime/MagicalGirlLyricalNanohaDetonation Detonation]]'', they're instead [[spoiler:Yuri and Iris' pet cats who have been turned into familiars.]]
60	* In the original ''Manga/Naruto1997'' pilot, Naruto is a [[AsianFoxSpirit kitsune]] with a human ShapeshifterDefaultForm, and the son of the deceased Nine-Tailed Fox. In ''Manga/{{Naruto}}'', Naruto is human, and the still-living Nine-Tailed Fox is sealed within him.
61	* ''Franchise/NeonGenesisEvangelion'':
62	** The [[HumongousMecha EVA Units]] from ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' are engineered biological entities with mechanical parts and armor in the original show and movies, but in the [[LighterAndSofter more]] [[DenserAndWackier comedic]] ''Anime/PetitEva'' series, EVA-01 is a straight-up robot.
63	** [[spoiler:Somewhat in the case of Asuka in the ''Anime/RebuildOfEvangelion'' films. The original Asuka was, albeit a "designer baby", a naturally-born human. The Asuka of ''Rebuild'' is part of a series of clones similar to Rei.]]
64	* In ''Anime/MewtwoStrikesBackEvolution'', the CGI remake of ''Anime/PokemonTheFirstMovie'', the Pokemon used by Raymond the pirate during his battle with Ash near the very beginning that was originally a Golem was instead replaced with a Drowzee, likely to correct an error showing Golem being knocked out by Pikachu (Ground-type Pokemon are immune to the Electric-type in the games) in the original.
65	* ''Anime/PowerpuffGirlsZ''
66	** The titular girls are superpowered {{artificial human}}s from the get go in [[WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls1998 the original cartoon]]. In this anime they are ordinary girls before being empowered.
67	** The original Mojo Jojo was a chimpanzee pre-mutation. In this anime he was a macaque.
68	** The talking dog character in the original cartoon is ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin. The anime has Poochi, a RobotDog [[CompositeCharacter who also serves as the Powerpuff Hotline]].
69	* ''Anime/SamuraiPizzaCats'': In the Japanese version the villain is a fox named Kitsunezuka Ko'on, but the English localization referred to him as a rat and renamed him Seymour Cheese.
70	* In the original ''VideoGame/ShowByRock'' game, Cyan was a typical myumon. The [[Anime/ShowByRock 2015 anime]] has her start out as a human named Shian Hijirikawa, only becoming a myumon while trapped in MIDI City.
71	* [[spoiler:Lola]] and [[spoiler:Layla]] in ''Manga/VenusVersusVirus'' are normal girls with psychic powers in the manga but [[spoiler:ageless, {{artificial human}}s]] in the anime.
72	* ''Anime/Anime/YohaneTheParhelionSunshineInTheMirror'': As a fantasy adaptation of the idol series ''Anime/LoveLiveSunshine'', ''Sunshine in the Mirror'' changes some of the human characters into fictional creatures.
73	** Ruby is now a fairy [[spoiler:who can take up a human form [[VoluntaryShapeshifting if she desires]]]]. An audio drama reveals [[spoiler:her older sister Dia is also a Fairy, though in the anime she's only seen in her human form]].
74	** Mari goes from a human to a demon queen.
75	[[/folder]]
76
77	[[folder:Asian Animation]]
78	* A one-off season of ''Animation/PleasantGoatAndBigBigWolf'' called ''Mr.Wolffy, Mr.Right!'' changes Wolffy the wolf into a human.
79	[[/folder]]
80
81	[[folder:Comic Strips]]
82	* In one of ''ComicStrip/DickTracy''[='=]s many, many cameos by other comic characters since Staton and Curtis took over, Dick gets a phone call from ''ComicBook/UsagiYojimbo''[='=]s Inspector Ishida. Since ''Dick Tracy'' is not a WorldOfFunnyAnimals, this version of Ishida is human.
83	[[/folder]]
84
85	[[folder:Films -- Animation]]
86	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Balto}}'': The movie is VeryLooselyBasedOnATrueStory about the titular HeroicDog. In real life, Balto was a purebred Siberian Husky, while in the movie, he's half wolf, which his [[BeYourself Character]] [[InternalizedCategorism Arc]] [[AllOfTheOtherReindeer hinges on]].
87	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Bambi}}'': [[Literature/{{Bambi}} The novel's]] Bambi was a roe deer in (presumably) Austria, but Disney made Bambi a white-tailed deer in Maine because the latter species was more familiar to American audiences [[note]]As mentioned [[https://tinyurl.com/66mj7vnk here]], Disney planned on making Bambi a mule deer and have the movie implied to be set in California, but his animator, Maurice "Jake" Day insisted otherwise[[/note]] .
88	* ''WesternAnimation/BarbieOfSwanLake'': In the ballet, Rothbart is an OminousOwl-like creature and Odile is called the "Black Swan" (implying she turns into one). In this movie, they both turn into [[VileVulture vultures]].
89	* The [[Creator/{{Pixar}} Dinoco logo's]] appearance and design actually vary depending on which film it appears in. In the ''Franchise/ToyStory'' series films, it's colored red and features an Apatosaurus (just like the logo of the now-defunct Sinclair Oil company, which looks similar), but in the ''Franchise/{{Cars}}'' series films, it's instead colored blue and features a ''Tyrannosaurus rex'' (the name Dinoco comes from the Sunoco Oil company, the official fuel of NASCAR, which is also colored blue).
90	* In the original ''Literature/BasilOfBakerStreet'' books, Professor Ratigan was implied to have been a mouse or a "big mouse." In the Disney movie ''WesternAnimation/TheGreatMouseDetective'', his species is changed to a rat to be more in line with his last name. Doesn't keep him from being in denial of his species though.
91	** In the original ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' books, and in most other adaptations, Toby is a bloodhound, but in the Disney movie, he is a Basset hound.
92	* ''WesternAnimation/BatmanAssaultOnArkham'': King Shark is made into an augmented cyborg with tough skin and metallic jaws instead of a half-human/half-shark demigod.
93	* In ''Literature/TheCallOfTheWild'', Buck was a Saint Bernard/Scotch Collie mix, but an animated adaptation distributed by [=GoodTimes=] made him a German Shepherd.
94	* ''Westernanimation/DCLeagueOfSuperPets'' has Ace the Bat-Hound as a Boxer rather than a German Shepherd or Great Dane, Wonder Woman's pet being the pig PB rather than the kangaroo-like Jumpa, and Chip is an ordinary Earth squirrel that gains electricity powers, in contrast to Ch'p in the comics being a Green Lantern Corpsman who is a member of a race of squirrel-like aliens called H'lvenites.
95	* The ''WesternAnimation/{{Felidae}}'' film changes the breeds of several of the cats from [[Literature/{{Felidae}} the book]]. For example, Felicity in the book is a Russian Blue, but she doesn't fit the Breed Standard in the film (being long-haired instead of short-furred).
96	* In ''Literature/{{Flatland}}: [[TheFilmOfTheBook The Movie]]'', the women of Flatland are the same shapes as the men, rather than simply lines.
97	* ''WesternAnimation/GnomeoAndJuliet'': In addition to everyone becoming a sentient garden gnome, the Nurse is a frog fountain, Friar Laurence is a plastic flamingo, and Balthasar is a small mushroom that doesn't speak.
98	* ''Anime/Gundam00AWakeningOfTheTrailblazer'': An InUniverse example shown in [[ShowWithinAShow a movie based on the actual second season]]. Tieria Erde, an [[ArtificialHuman Innovade]], is presented as a ScaryBlackMan, also making this a case of RaceLift.
99	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Hercules}}'': The character from the original Myth/ClassicalMythology is the son of Zeus to a mortal woman and is thus a demi-god. The title character [[RelatedDifferentlyInTheAdaptation is instead Zeus' son with Hera]] meaning he's a full god, but was depowered by his EvilUncle for much of the film.
100	* In the original ''Literature/HowToTrainYourDragon'' books, Toothless was [[ComMons a tiny Common Dragon]]. In the [[WesternAnimation/HowToTrainYourDragon2010 film]], he is now [[OlympusMons a Night Fury, a rare and powerful dragon type]]. The books later retconned him into being a young Seadragonus Giganticus Maximus, a powerful, rare type of dragon like the Night Fury.
101	* In ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueDark'', Black Orchid is the physical manifestation of the House of Mystery, in contrast [[Comicbook/JusticeLeagueDark the comics]], where she was a human woman who developed superpowers as the result of a military experiment involving the Green.
102	* ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueGodsAndMonsters'' and its tie-in media made Giganta into a HumongousMecha and [[spoiler: Comicbook/{{Brainiac}} into a genetically engineered little boy.]]
103	* ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueXRWBYSuperHeroesAndHuntsmen'' sees the members of the [[Comicbook/JusticeLeagueOfAmerica JLA]] transported to Remnant. As such, Comicbook/{{Batman}} and Comicbook/{{Vixen}} are changed into [[BeastMan Faunus]] patterned after a bat and a fox, respectively.
104	* ''WesternAnimation/LegendOfTheGuardiansTheOwlsOfGaHoole'':
105	** Otulissa and Strix Struma were spotted owls in the ''Literature/GuardiansOfGaHoole'' books, but they've become short-eared owls in the movie. This is most likely because of wanting to make the owls have expressive eyes and faces.
106	** The High Tyto before Kludd (Metal Beak in this movie, while Metal Beak is saved for Kludd). He was a barn owl in the books, but is a sooty owl in the movie. The irony is that the owl whose species is low in the Pure Ones ranks is the leader of said Pure Ones.
107	* ''WesternAnimation/{{Moana}}'': Tamatoa is a giant crab, while in actual Polynesian legend he's a headless warrior.
108	* ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie2017'': In the somewhat obscure [[ComicBook/MyLittlePony G1 comic]] where he first appeared, the Storm King was a burly, troll-like humanoid. In the movie, since there aren't supposed to be any humans or human-like creatures in the G4 world, he was portrayed as a yeti-like creature with satyr-like hooves.
109	* For whatever reason, ''WesternAnimation/TheNewAdventuresOfPeterRabbit'' changes Tommy Brock from a BadOlBadger to a grouchy hedgehog, which makes it rather confusing that he’s treated like some sort of threat to the rabbit protagonists.
110	* In the original ''Literature/PeterPan'', Nana is a Newfoundland, but in [[WesternAnimation/PeterPan the Disney adaptation]], she is a Saint Bernard.
111	* In ''WesternAnimation/{{Pinocchio}}'' Monstro is a huge, aggressive whale that swallows people whole. In [[Literature/TheAdventuresOfPinocchio the original book]] the sea monster is a "[[ThreateningShark terrible dogfish]]" (that is, a shark).
112	* ''Anime/PrincessArete'': Grovel is a frog turned Boax's {{Familiar}} instead of a human servant whom Boax turns into a frog when Arete completes all three of her {{Impossible Task}}s.
113	* In ''WesternAnimation/ScoobyDooAndTheGhoulSchool'', the ghost Phantasma's father is clearly based on the eponymous character of ''Film/ThePhantomOfTheOpera1925'', but is reimagined as an actual ghost rather than a disfigured living man.
114	* In ''WesternAnimation/SgtStubbyAnAmericanHero'', the titular dog, Sergeant Stubby, appears to be a Boxer as opposed to a mixed "bully" breed in real-life.
115	* The book that ''Franchise/{{Shrek}}'' is based on simply describes Shrek as a monster, doesn't say which kind. The movie on the other hand explicitly describes him as an ogre.
116	* In ''Literature/TheSnowQueen'', the titular queen is heavily implied to be of TheFairFolk. In ''WesternAnimation/{{Frozen\|2013}}'', Elsa is a human who was born with the ability to create and manipulate ice and snow.
117	* Creator/EdgarRiceBurroughs' original ''Literature/{{Tarzan}}'' stories:
118	** Sabor was a lioness, but in Disney's ''WesternAnimation/{{Tarzan}}'', she was changed to a leopardess. [[note]]Since lions don't live in the jungle, this was a largely pragmatic change.[[/note]]
119	** The apes Tarzan lived with weren't gorillas, but [[FrazettaMan a fictional species of ape (or hominid?) called mangani]]. The mangani were mortal enemies of the bolgani (the mangani's blanket term for gorillas).
120	** In the original books, Tarzan has a monkey sidekick named Nkima, but in the classic films and live action TV show he has a chimp sidekick named Cheeta. The gorilla Terk from the Disney adaptation is loosely based on them.
121	* In a Magazine/DisneyAdventures comic adaptation of ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory1'', released several months after the movie came out, Andy's dog Buster (who is unnamed in this story) is a brown mutt with spots. By the time ''WesternAnimation/ToyStory2'' rolled around, Buster is a Dachshund.
122	* ''WesternAnimation/TreasurePlanet'' is ''Literature/TreasureIsland'' [-[[JustForFun/RecycledInSpace IN SPACE]]-]; as such, the only human characters are Jim and his parents, while everyone else is some kind of alien (or robot, occasionally). It even extends to the animals, with the TropeCodifier for PirateParrot changed to a blobby creature named Morph, who can [[{{Shapeshifting}} imitate your shape]] as well as your words.
123	* While in Myth/NorseMythology Thor was the love-child between the god Odin and Jord, Giantess that embodied Midgard, in ''WesternAnimation/LegendsOfValhallaThor'' he is half-human.
124	[[/folder]]
125
126	[[folder:Literature]]
127	* In ''Literature/AnnoDracula'', nearly all supernatural beings are actually vampire variants, whether the original source has them as werewolves, demons, aliens or youkai. Multiple characters who were human but either nearly-superhumanly skilled or actually superpowered in the source material are also vampires, ranging from Literature/{{Biggles}} to [[Series/CaptainScarletAndTheMysterons Captain Scarlet]].
128	* In "The Merchant's Tale" from ''Literature/TheCanterburyTales'', Pluto and Proserpina, gods of Myth/ClassicalMythology, are now TheFairFolk.
129	* In the novelization to ''Film/{{Labyrinth}}'', the goblin announcing that Sarah and the gang have reached the castle refers to Hoggle as a gnome rather than a dwarf.
130	* The novelization to ''Film/MenInBlack'' is an EarlyDraftTieIn where a second race called the Baltians have joined the Araquillians in threatening to destroy Earth. The tiny aliens piloting [[MobileSuitHuman Mobile Suit Humans]] are now called Baltians instead of Arquillians.
131	* Something similar to the ''Canterbury Tales'' example happens in the 14th century poem ''Sir Orfeo'', a SettingUpdate of the myth of Orpheus and Euridyce, which replaced Hades with an unnamed "king of the Otherworld".
132	* In ''The Hidden History of Oz'' series by Tarl Telford, Glinda isn't an immortal fairy like in Baum canon. She starts out as a human teenager and the daughter of a sorceress.
133	* ''Literature/JackAndTheBeanstalk'': Many versions feature a hen instead of a goose. A few replace the giant with an ogre.
134	* ''Literature/TheWickedYears'' changes a few characters species from the ''Literature/LandOfOz'' series. For example, Glinda the Good Witch is a [[TheFairFolk fairy]] however in ''Wicked'' she is a normal mortal human who studied magic.
135	* ''Literature/FiftyShadesOfGrey'' was orginally a ''[[Literature/TheTwilightSaga Twilight]]'' fanfiction titled ''Master of the Universe'' that employed AdaptationalMundanity. As such, Edward Cullen and the rest of the Cullen family (who became Christian Grey and the Trevelyan-Grey family) are humans rather than vampires; the same goes for several supporting characters. Jacob, who became Jose, isn't a werewolf. And [[spoiler: Bella/Ana and Edward/Christian]]'s child isn't a {{dhampir}}, nor does Bella/Ana end up becoming a vampire.
136	* When Creator/DarkHorseComics first released the comics that'd be the basis for ''Literature/AliensStevePerryTrilogy'', they were able to use Ripley, Hicks, and Newt. Then ''Film/Alien3'' happened, complete with the fates of [[TheHeroDies Ripley,]] [[KilledOffscreen Hicks, and Newt]] -- and later rereleases of the comics, as well as the books, replaced Hicks and Newt with {{Suspiciously Similar Substitute}}s and, relevant to this trope, replaced Ripley with a gynoid who just thought she was Ellen Ripley.
137	* In ''Literature/TheSleeperAndTheSpindle'' by Creator/NeilGaiman, it's a plot point that Literature/SnowWhite's evil stepmother was a member of the same MageSpecies as the evil fairy who cursed Literature/SleepingBeauty. In the original version of "Snow White", and most adaptations, there's no indication that the evil queen isn't human.
138	* ''Literature/TheDivineComedy'':
139	** In the original Greek myths, Geryon is described as a giant with three bodies and/or three heads. However, Dante depicts him as [[OurManticoresAreDifferent a manticore-like creature]] instead.
140	** Cacus was a fire-breathing giant in Greek mythology, but Dante depicts him as a centaur with a fire-breathing dragon on his shoulders and snakes covering his equine back.
141	** At one point, Dante and Virgil find Nimrod deep in Hell for the crime of creating the Tower Of Babel. He's described as a 30 foot tall [[OurGiantsAreBigger giant]]. In the original story of Literature/TheBible there's nothing to indicate he's anything other than a normal-size human.
142	* ''Literature/DiaryOfAWimpyKidDogDays'': Frank's childhood pet Nutty is a cat in the webcomic, but a dog in this book.
143	[[/folder]]
144
145	[[folder:Myths & Religion]]
146	* In some tellings, [[Myth/HinduMythology Durga]] rides on an [[PantheraAwesome Asiatic lion]]. In others, she rides on a tiger. Either way, a [[HorseOfADifferentColor Cool Mount]].
147	* Some hypotheses root [[Literature/JourneyToTheWest Sun Wukong]] in early Chinese gibbon chasing stories. If this is the case then he most assuredly is not depicted as a gibbon anymore, being more well known as the Monkey King. He is also accepted to have some inspiration from [[Myth/HinduMythology Hanuman]], which also counts since Hanuman is sometimes accepted to be a specific type of mythological monkey.
148	[[/folder]]
149
150	[[folder:Puppet Shows]]
151	* In ''Literature/EmmetOttersJugBandChristmas'', one of Emmet's bandmates is a raccoon called Wendell Coon. In the Creator/JimHenson adaptation, he becomes Wendell Porcupine. This may have been due to the unfortunate implications of the word "coon".
152	* In ''Film/TheMuppetsWizardOfOz'', Toto is a king prawn instead of a dog. [[JustifiedTrope Justified]], since after Dorothy ends up in Oz, Toto is played by Pepe. Pre-tornado, he's seen as an actual prawn in a goldfish bowl. This trope is averted with the Cowardly Lion, though: he's still a lion, even though his "actor," Fozzie, is a bear.
153	[[/folder]]
154
155	[[folder:Theatre]]
156	* In the stage adaptation of the Disney animated feature ''WesternAnimation/{{Aladdin}}'':
157	** Jafar's sidekick Iago is a human instead of a parrot.
158	** Aladdin's pet monkey Abu is also replaced with three human companions called Babkak, Kassim and Omar who were present in early drafts of the movie before Abu was thought of.
159	* In ''Theatre/ADzsungelKonyve'', a Hungarian stage adaptation of ''Literature/TheJungleBook'', Chil is a vulture instead of a kite.
160	* In the play adaptations of ''Series/LazyTown'', Sportacus is depicted as an [[OurElvesAreDifferent elf]] instead of a human.
161	* ''Theatre/TheLittleMermaid'' changes Flotsam and Jetsam from moray eels (as in ''WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaid1989'') to electric eels ([[PsychoElectricEel psycho ones]], at that).
162	* ''Theatre/PinocchioTheMusical'' replaces the fishes who turned Pinocchio back from a donkey to a puppet with mermaids.
163	* The [[Theatre/TheWizardOfOz1902 1902 stage adaptation]] of ''Literature/TheWonderfulWizardOfOz'' replaced Toto the dog with Imogen the Cow.
164	* ''Theatre/SonicLiveInSydney'' changed Princess Sally from a chipmunk to a marsupial, as there are no native chipmunks in Australia.
165	* Orpheus's lover Eurydice is traditionally a dryad, or tree nymph, in the myths, while in ''Theatre/OrpheusAPoeticDrama'' she's a nereid, or water nymph.
166	* The ''Series/WalkingWithDinosaurs'' Arena Spectacular changes the ''Coelophysis'' from the first episode into ''Liliensternus''. The reasons are probably pragmatic, first because, [[MisplacedWildlife unlike]] ''Coelophysis'', ''Liliensternus'' actually did coexist with ''Plateosaurus'', and secondly because ''Liliensternus'' is much bigger, making it easier to portray with a live-acted costume.
167	[[/folder]]
168
169	[[folder:Theme Parks]]
170	* "Pinocchio Unstrung," Knott's Scary Farm's horror maze adaptation that turns Literature/{{Pinocchio}} into an [[AdaptationalVillainy insane murderous fiend]], turns Monstro the whale into an anglerfish. He works with Pinocchio to eat the guests.
171	[[/folder]]
172
173	[[folder:Toys]]
174	* For reasons known only to the North American branch of Epoch, the Walnuts Squirrel family in the Franchise/SylvanianFamilies toys and anime range are marketed as Chipmunks. They were previously marketed as squirrels under the Furbanks family however, but then a renaming exercise took place on the non-Japanese branches and this happened (the International English branches chose to sync the family name with the Japanese family name but gave them first names, in the original Japanese market they do not have first names). Their family name was also changed to Hazelnut, but [[DubNameChange that's a different trope]].
175	[[/folder]]
176
177	[[folder:Video Games]]
178	* ''VideoGame/BinaryLand'': The protagonists are a pair of humans in the original computer versions. In the Famicom port, they're turned into penguins.
179	* ''Toys/{{Bionicle}}'': The Gukko are a made-up species of orange and silver colored, four-winged, legless cyborg birds with a long, straight beak. In ''BIONICLE: The Game'', the Gukko is a [[AdaptationDyeJob green and yellow]] cyborg parrot.
180	* Eve in the ''VideoGame/BlasterMaster'' series was originally a HumanAlien from a distant planet. In the ''[[VideoGame/BlasterMasterZero Zero]]'' series, [[LateArrivalSpoiler it's revealed]] she's actually an [[RidiculouslyHumanRobot android]]. [[spoiler:[[ZigZaggingTrope But in the third game, she ends up transforming into a Human Alien.]]]] Also, Fred went from being definitely a frog to a frog-like "unidentified lifeform".
181	* ''VideoGame/DevilMayCry'': In the original games, Dante and Vergil were half-human, half-demon hybrids. In the Creator/NinjaTheory [[VideoGame/DMCDevilMayCry game]], Dante and Vergil are {{Nephilim}}, [[BornOfHeavenAndHell half-demon and half-angel]]. As their mother Eva is an angel in this continuity instead of a human like the original, this trope applies to her as well.
182	* While all games provide [[DependingOnTheWriter different interpretation]] of recurring summons' appearances, ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyXII'' goes to the extreme by turning them into airships. Examples include Dreadnought ''[[SnakesAreSinister Leviathan]]'', Light Cruiser ''[[AnIcePerson Shiva]]'', Heavy Carrier ''[[MechanicalLifeforms Alexander]]'', and Sky Fortress ''[[OurDragonsAreDifferent Bahamut]]''. The game's summons are instead based on the villainous Lucavi from ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyTactics''.
183	* ''VideoGame/KingdomHeartsII'' inexplicably changed [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyX Yuna, Rikku]] and [[VideoGame/FinalFantasyX2 Paine]] into fairies.
184	* ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaTearsOfTheKingdom'':
185	** Unlike earlier games in [[Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda the franchise]], which represented them as mummy-like undead, this version of the reoccurring Gibdo enemies reinvents them as insect-like monsters that simply have a skeletal appearance, as they emerge from colonial hives, possess mandibles, have a flying variant with butterfly-like wings, and have a queen which resembles a giant moth.
186	** The Rauru in ''VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaOcarinaOfTime'' is portrayed as a Hylian. There's another character named Rauru in ''Tears of the Kingdom'', but unlike every other LegacyCharacter across the franchise, his species is changed to a Zonai, a race of BeastMen.
187	* ''VideoGame/LiesOfP'':
188	** P, the [[Literature/TheAdventuresOfPinocchio Pinocchio]] of this adaptation is an automaton robot as opposed to the wooden puppet he was in the original book.
189	** Gemini, P's cricket companion is here a cricket automaton instead of being a magical talking insect like in the source material.
190	** All the anthropomorphic animal characters are here reimagined as humans wearing animal face masks that correspond to their animal counterpart and part of a criminal organization known as the Stalkers.
191	** The human circus ringmaster and Mangiafucco become automaton puppets known as the Parade Master and King's Flame, Fucco in the game.
192	* ''Franchise/MegaMan'': In the various iterations of the franchise, Roll is almost always either another robot or artificial intelligence of some kind like Mega Man himself. In ''VideoGame/MegaManLegends'', however, Roll Caskett is a human girl.
193	** Though really, [[spoiler:a RidiculouslyHumanRobot in a world where pure humans have gone extinct.]]
194	* ''Anime/MobileFighterGGundam'': In the original game, Master Asia is a regular human. ''VideoGame/ShinSuperRobotWars'' changed things up. In this game, Master Asia is an agent of the Dug Interstellar Republic, sent in response to report intelligent life on Earth.
195	* ''Videogame/MortalKombat1'':
196	** Raiden is no longer the God of Thunder, but is instead a mortal farmer from a small village in China. Accordingly, his trademark lightning powers now come from a special amulet given to him by Liu Kang, rather than being a divine ability he was born with.
197	** The Tarkatans are no longer a distinct species of creatures, but are instead Edenians who have become afflicted with a disfiguring illness known as Tarkat. Because of this massive lore change, Baraka is now stated to be a former Edenian merchant who became a blade-armed monster after contracting Tarkat.
198	** Likewise, rather than being the half-Tarkatan clone of the Edenian princess Kitana, Mileena is now Kitana's biological sister whose monstrous appearance comes from the Tarkat disease.
199	** Smoke is a human ninja rather than an [[SuperSmoke Enenra]] (a Japanese smoke {{Youkai}}), with his abilities now coming from magical spells he learned during his time with the Lin Kuei.
200	** Quan Chi is now an Outworlder who learned sorcery rather than an Oni or demon from the Netherrealm.
201	* ''VideoGame/PrinceOfPersiaWarriorWithin'': In Myth/PersianMythology, the name Dahaka refers to a three-headed dragon. In the games, the name refers to a HumanoidAbomination [[ClockRoaches tasked with killing those who interfere with the flow of time]].
202	* ''VideoGame/PokemonMysteryDungeonExplorers'': While exploring Amp Plains, the main characters come across a tribe of electric-type Pokémon. In ''Explorers of Time'' and ''Darkness'', the tribe is made of Luxios and a Luxray. In ''Explorers of Sky'', the tribe encountered is instead made of Electrikes and a Manetric, because Shinx, the pre-evolution of Luxio, was added as a possible starter.
203	* [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]] in the fangame ''Super Mario: All-Star Attack'' with Wanda. She's a fairy in [[VideoGame/MarioAndWario her game of origin]], but a member of the Sprixie species here.
204	* In ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsV'', Hokushin is the last Meganoid, whereas he was a human in ''Anime/MartianSuccessorNadesico: Prince of Darkness''. {{Justified}} because according to [[Anime/Daitarn3 Banjo Haran]], his father gave the Jovian Union the technology to turn into Meganoids.
205	* ''VideoGame/ATotalWarSagaTroy'': In Myth/ClassicalMythology, the Corybantes were human worshippers of Cybele. In the game, they're giant lion people.
206	* ''VideoGame/{{Ultrakill}}'': Plenty of characters are depicted as different species from their [[Literature/TheDivineComedy Inferno counterparts]], one of which [[CanonImmigrant isn't even from the poem]].
207	** In the poem, King Minos is a giant [[SnakePeople snake man]] with a long tail that he uses to judge the sinners with before casting them into their designated [[CirclesOfHell layers]] for eternal punishment. Here in the game, he's depicted as a fully humanoid, if still towering, [[OurSoulsAreDifferent Husk]] with a [[AnimalMotif snake motif]] as the only reference to his poem counterpart's serpentine qualities. [[spoiler:Even as a [[SuperBoss Prime Soul]], King Minos still retains a fully humanoid body plan, and the only serpentine qualities in that form are a pair of ethereal snakes that are coiled on each of his arms.]]
208	** In ''Literature/TheBible'', [[KrakenAndLeviathan The Leviathan]] is a fully reptilian, if horrific, primordial beast. Here in the game, The Leviathan is a serpentine [[OurDemonsAreDifferent Demon]] made of [[LivingStatue stone and flesh]] [[spoiler:whose [[BodyOfBodies body is formed from The Sullen]], sinners who sunk to [[UnderworldRiver The Styx' Abyss]] out of despair.]] It is also worth mentioning that The Leviathan is never mentioned in the poem despite being ''The Bible'''s most infamous monster.
209	** In the poem, [[OurMinotaursAreDifferent The Minotaur]] is a half-human and half-bull creature. Here in the game, The Minotaur is a Demon resembling a bull-shaped mish-mash of meat and stone.
210	** In the poem, [[OurCentaursAreDifferent The Centaurs]] are half-human and half-horse creatures. Here in the game, their analogs are ''[[HumongousMecha colossal]]'' {{Mechanical Horse}}s known as "Earthmovers".
211	[[/folder]]
212
213	[[folder:Web Animation]]
214	* ''WebAnimation/DarkSecretsOfGarrysMod'': [[Franchise/TolkiensLegendarium Sauron]] in the ''Kalandregény'' (''Adventure novel'') StoryArc is revealed to be actually a [[Toys/MyLittlePony unicorn]] who is able to {{shapeshift\|er}} into an ainu.
215	* Darlene Spritzer of ''WebAnimation/LoboWebseries'' was a humanoid alien in the comics. In this cartoon, she is a human.
216	[[/folder]]
217
218	[[folder:Web Comics]]
219	* The players in ''Webcomic/DarthsAndDroids'' discuss a campaign which Sally ran which turns out to be an in-universe version of [[spoiler: Franchise/JurassicPark told from the point of view of the dinosaurs]] - except that the cloned [[spoiler: dinosaurs]] were robots in Sally's version.
220	* One of the main characters of ''Webcomic/KiwiBlitz'' is a RobotGirl named 42. When she and several other characters make a cameo appearance as a MagicalGirl team in ''Webcomic/SleeplessDomain'', she is instead a human girl with technology-themed powers.
221	* ''Webcomic/MoringMarkTOHComics'':
222	** One of the first big twists in the comics following the cast's children is the reveal that [[spoiler:Grom is actually a witch suffering from an Archivist curse rather than just a mindless demon.]]
223	** Amity, Edric and Emira are all [[UnevenHybrid 1/16th human]] rather than pure-blooded witches as one of their great-grandmothers was a human (more specifically, [[spoiler:Ameila Earhart]]) who somehow ended up on the Boiling Isles. It doesn't specify whether she was from Alador or Odalia's side of the family, though whichever one it was would make them qualify as well.
224	* The Webcomic/WalkyVerse gives us Ultra Car, a SentientVehicle turned RobotGirl. ''Webcomic/DumbingOfAge'' gives us her human equivalent Carla, a trans girl.
225	* ''Webcomic/YellowBrickRamble'': This comic-slash-graphic-novel adaptation of the second Oz novel, ''Literature/TheMarvelousLandOfOz'', brings in Dashemoff Daily, the Poet Lauriette of Oz, who was originally a character in ''Theatre/TheWizardOfOz1902'' stageplay. Dashemoff was a human in his canon appearance, but in this webcomic adaptation he has been changed into a donkey. The comic artist has said that this change is to make it simpler for Dashemoff to fall in love with a particular equine main character.
226	[[/folder]]
227
228	[[folder:Web Videos]]
229	* In the original ''Literature/PrideAndPrejudice'', Kitty Bennet is a human being and is the second youngest of the Bennet sisters. ''WebVideo/TheLizzieBennetDiaries'' turned her into Lydia Bennet's pet cat.
230	* ''WebVideo/SMPLive'': Despite Travis's skin being a monkey, all of his VOD thumbnails depict him as an anthropomorphic shiba inu. Additionally, one of his oldest skins depicts him as a human.
231	[[/folder]]
232
233	[[folder:Real Life]]
234	* The American holiday of Groundhog Day, when groundhogs are alleged to emerge from hibernation and either retreat back underground or stay depending on the weather to come, has its basis in similar European traditions, including an Irish "Hedgehog Day" custom. But there are no hedgehogs native to North America, so an alternative small burrowing mammal was substituted.
235	* Rome's eagle, originally a symbol of Zeus, is a golden eagle, also called "royal eagle" in some languages. Its use as a symbol was continued by several European states that claimed to be successors of Rome. When the United States gained independence, they deliberately chose an eagle symbol as a throwback to Rome, but made it a bald eagle, a species only found in North America. The United States does have golden eagles, but they aren't found on the east coast, where the original American colonies were located.
236	[[/folder]]

Context Main / AdaptationSpeciesChange