Cinderella is an old folktale that has been retold and adapted in many ways over the centuries in different parts of the world. The best known version was published by French writer Charles Perrault in the late 17th century.
If you were looking for a trope, that's Cinderella Plot.
Cinderella and its adaptations include:
Literature
- Yeh-Shen: One of the oldest surviving variations of the tale from at least the 8th century. This version is a traditional Chinese folktale.
- Cinderella, the fairy tale itself, including the best known versions by Charles Perrault (1697) and The Brothers Grimm (1812).
- Ella Enchanted: (1997) Twice-Told Tale by Gail Carson Levine
- Confessions of an Ugly Stepsister: (1999) A deconstruction of the traditional story by Gregory Maguire.
- Just Ella: (1999) A "sequel" to the fairy tale that averts the happily ever after the story is generally left on.
- Phoenix and Ashes: (2004) Part of the Elemental Masters series, with a Setting Update to WWI-era Britain.
- Stepsister: A sequel to the Grimm Brothers version and a deeper look into the lives and minds of the "ugly" stepsisters, one more prominently than the other.
- "Cinderella and the Magic Box" (2015), a Doctor Who Expanded Universe story published in the collection Time Lord Fairy Tales, with the Doctor in the fairy godmother role.
- Sweet Nightingale: A retelling of Cinderella, where the hero is a transgender man instead of a woman. (2016)
- So This is Love: A Twisted Tale (2020)
Feature films
- Ella Cinders: (1926), a comedic take with a Setting Update.
- Cinderella (1947), a Soviet-Russian live-action film.
- Cinderella (1950), a Disney animated film.
- Cinderella II: Dreams Come True (2002), a direct-to-video sequel.
- Cinderella III: A Twist in Time (2007), another direct-to-video sequel.
- Cinderella (2015), a live-action remake of the animated film.
- Cinderella (1957), a musical film / stage play by Rodgers and Hammerstein.
- Tři oříšky pro Popelku / Drei Haselnüsse für Aschenbrödel ("Three Hazelnuts for Cinderella", Three Wishes for Cinderella) (1973), joint Czechoslovak and German live-action production.
- The Slipper and the Rose (1976): A musical retelling where political pressures interfere with the Fairy Godmother's ability to produce a fairy tale outcome.
- Cinderella (1979), an adaptation by Soyuzmultfilm.
- Cinderella (Jetlag Productions) (1994)
- Cinderella (1997): The film adaptation of Cinderella (Rodgers and Hammerstein) starring Brandy.
- EverAfter: a Cinderella story: (1998), a version rid of all the magic.
- Cinderella: (2000), a Made-for-TV Movie on Channel 4, set in the 1950s (but with magic) starring Marcella Plunkett as Zezolla (Cinderella) and Kathleen Turner as Claudette (the stepmother).
- A Cinderella Story (2004), a mundane, modern-day take on the story. Warner Bros. made this and developed dvd standalone sequels with similar concepts.
- Another Cinderella Story (2008)
- A Cinderella Story: Once upon a Song (2011)
- A Cinderella Story: If the Shoe Fits (2016)
- A Cinderella Story: Christmas Wish (2019)
- A Cinderella Story: Starstruck (2021)
- Ella Enchanted (2004), a loose adaptation of the novel that keeps the central premise of a young woman being abused by her evil stepfamily.
- Rags (2012), a modernized and gender-flipped retelling about a boy named Charlie and a popstar named Kadee.
- Cinderella the Cat: Italian animated movie made in 2017. A futuristic take on the story set in Naples.
- Cinderella (2021): A live-action Jukebox Musical adaptation starring Camila Cabello as the lead and Billy Porter as a genderless fairy godparent.
Television series
- Cenerentola (2011), an Italian miniseries setting the fairy tale in Rome during the 1950s.
- The Story of Cinderella (1996), a Japanese anime series based on the fairy tale.
- Once Upon a Time (2011-2018), in which Cinderella and her stepfamily have two centric episodes that retell the story. In Season 7, an alternate version of Cinderella, Lady Tremaine and Drizella are major characters.
Theatre
- La Cenerentola (1817), an Italian opera by Gioachino Rossini that replaces the supernatural elements.
- Cinderella (1957), a straightforward musical adaptation of the story written by the legendary Rodgers and Hammerstein.
- Cinderella (2021), a Fractured Fairy Tale take on the famous story written by Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Video Games
- Cinders: (2012), a Visual Novel made by Polish indie game studio MoaCube for Microsoft Windows, later ported to the Nintendo Switch in 2019.
Webcomics
- Girl Genius: The 2008 end of year side story was a parody adaptation in which there are two princes rather than one and the event is a science fair rather than a ball.
