The Phantom is an American adventure comic strip, first published by Lee Falk in February 1936. The main character, the Phantom, is a fictional costumed crime-fighter who operates from the fictional African country of Bangalla. The character has been adapted for television, film and video games. The series began with a daily newspaper strip on February 17, 1936, followed by a color Sunday strip on May 28, 1939; both are still running as of 2026. In 1966, King Features stated that The Phantom was being published in 583 newspapers worldwide. At its peak, the strip was read by over 100 million people daily. Falk worked on The Phantom until his death in 1999; since his death, the comic strip has been written by Tony DePaul.
Adaptations (3)
The Phantom has been adapted 3 times, across film and television series, from 1943 to 2009.
The Phantom1943 · film · 299 min · dir. B. Reeves Eason · IMDb ↗IMDb7.0Two expeditions are trying to reach the Lost City of Zoloz -- one headed by Professor Davidson, a scientist who wants to establish an archaeological site, and the other by a greedy treasure hunter who wants to keep the fabled treasures of the city for himself. An agent of a foreign power also wants to establish a secret airbase there, so he stirs up the natives against The Phantom, who has been able to get them to stay peaceful so far. When The Phantom is murdered, his son takes his place and sets out to restore peace to the jungle and stop the agents' and the treasure hunters' nefarious plans.
The Phantom1996 · film · 100 min · dir. Simon Wincer · IMDb ↗The 21st successor to the role of Bengalla's resident superhero must travel to New York to prevent a rich madman from obtaining three magic skulls that would give him the secret to ultimate power.
The Phantom2009 · television series · IMDb ↗IMDb5.7Chris Moore is shocked to learn that he was adopted and is actually the son of The Phantom, a caped crime fighter. He joins the Phantom team in the jungles of Bengalla to train in martial arts and combat, and emerges as the next Phantom.
