Public domain in the US and the UK, and in the EU except Spain until 1 January 2027

The Invisible ManH. G. Wells, 1897

Wells's 1897 novel is free in the US, the UK and most of the EU. The bandages and dark glasses are in the book; the films' designs belong to the films.

First published
1897
Author died
1946
Original language
English
Start my adaptationOriginal texts

Copyright status

Copyright ends at different dates in different countries. Here is where this work stands in the three places most readers release in.
WhereStatus
United StatesPublic domain. First published in 1897, before 1931: the 95-year US term for works of that age has run out.
European Union and United KingdomPublic domain since 1 January 2017. H. G. Wells died in 1946, and the term is 70 years after the end of the year of death. Exception: Spain keeps an 80-year term for authors who died before 1987, so the work only becomes free there on 1 January 2027.
Other countriesMost countries protect a work for 50 to 100 years after its author's death, and some have transition rules. If you release or sell in a specific country, check its law.

Status checked on October 26, 2026 against the sources listed in our legal guide.

A stranger wrapped in bandages, with dark glasses and a false nose, takes a room at an inn in the village of Iping and refuses to be seen. He is Griffin, a scientist who has made himself invisible and cannot reverse it. Short of money and patience, he turns to theft and violence, tells his story to an old university acquaintance, Dr Kemp, and plans a reign of terror, until Kemp betrays him and the town hunts him down.

Free to use

  • The 1897 novel: Griffin, Dr Kemp, Thomas Marvel, the innkeepers of Iping and the village itself.
  • Wells's own look for Griffin: bandages, dark glasses, a false pink nose, gloves and a wide hat.
  • The idea of invisibility as a curse rather than a power, and any modern version of it.
  • Commercial release in the US, the UK and the EU; in Spain from 1 January 2027.

Watch out for

  • Wells died in 1946, so the novel became free in the EU and the UK on 1 January 2017. Spain protects it until 31 December 2026.
  • Universal's 1933 film and its sequels, and the 2020 film, own their scripts and their exact designs. Build your Griffin from the book's description.
  • New translations are protected. Use the original English or an old translation.
  • Never prompt for an actor from a famous version.

The full rules, with the laws and court decisions behind them, are in our guide to adapting public domain works.

An adaptation idea

The village of Iping: a small-town comedy that turns into a horror film when the lodger takes off his bandages.

Format: A 20-minute short, or a feature told from the innkeeper's point of view.

Adapt it in ScreenWeaver

These are the steps as they run in ScreenWeaver today. You read and edit every step, and you start every generation yourself, in the app.

  1. 1Download the 1897 text below and save it as a PDF with a text layer.
  2. 2Attach it to a project and ask for the characters, places and objects. Create Griffin's bandaged look as a story element so it stays the same in every shot.
  3. 3Write the art direction: a snowy village inn, a country road, a seaside town in panic. Add a style image of your own.
  4. 4Ask for the scenes, then the shots; show what Griffin moves rather than Griffin himself.
  5. 5Generate the frames in Storyboard, then the clips in Production.

How a whole book becomes scenes and shots: novel to storyboard.

Original texts

Where to get The Invisible Man from a legal source

Questions

Is The Invisible Man public domain?
In the US, the UK and most of the EU, yes. H. G. Wells published it in 1897 and died in 1946. Spain protects it until 31 December 2026.
Can my character wear bandages and dark glasses?
Yes. Both are in Wells's novel. Avoid copying the exact costume and make-up of a film version.
Is the Universal version free?
No. The 1933 film is a separate work with its own term, and the studio has trademarks around its monsters.

General information, not legal advice. Copyright, trademark and personality rights depend on the country and on the facts of each project. For a commercial release, have a lawyer check your chain of rights.

Other works to adapt

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Import The Invisible Man, build the cast and the places, write the scenes and cut them into shots. The Screenwriter plan is free.
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