Title: The Elephant Man (film)
Content: Anthony Hopkins as Frederick Treves, a doctor who takes John from the freakshow to work in the hospital ; John Hurt as John Merrick, an intelligent, friendly and kind-hearted man who is feared by most people in his society because of his severe deformity ; Hannah Gordon as Ann Treves ; Anne Bancroft as Mrs Kendal ; John Gielgud as Francis Carr Gomm ; Wendy Hiller as Mrs Mothershead ; Freddie Jones as Mr Bytes, the evil ringmaster (based on Tom Norman ) ; Michael Elphick as Jim, the dishonest night porter ; Dexter Fletcher as Bytes' boy ; Helen Ryan as Alexandra, Princess of Wales ; John Standing as Fox ; Lesley Dunlop as Nora, Merrick's nurse ; Phoebe Nicholls (picture)/Lydia Lisle (footage) as Mary Jane Merrick ; Morgan Sheppard as man in pub ; Kenny Baker as plumed dwarf ; Pat Gorman as Fairground Bobby ; Pauline Quirke as prostitute ; Nula Conwell as Nurse Kathleen, one of Merrick's nurses 
Title: List of accolades received by The Elephant Man
Content:  The Elephant Man is a 1980 American drama film based on the true story of Joseph Merrick (called John Merrick in the film), a severely deformed man in 19th century London. The film was directed by David Lynch and stars John Hurt, Anthony Hopkins, Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud, Wendy Hiller, Michael Elphick, Hannah Gordon, and Freddie Jones. Lynch adapted the screenplay draft by Christopher De Vore and Eric Bergren. Although Mel Brooks agreed to produce the film through his production company Brooksfilms, it was turned down by a number of studios before it was finally greenlit by Paramount Pictures. Seen perhaps as the most conventional of Lynch's otherwise surrealist films, The Elephant Man was a commercial success, grossing over $26 million in the United States alone. 
Title: The Elephant Man (film)
Content:  The Elephant Man is a 1980 British-American historical drama film about Joseph Merrick (whom the script calls John Merrick), a severely deformed man in late 19th-century London. The film was directed by David Lynch and stars John Hurt, Anthony Hopkins, Anne Bancroft, John Gielgud, Wendy Hiller, Michael Elphick, Hannah Gordon, and Freddie Jones. It was produced by Jonathan Sanger and Mel Brooks, the latter of whom was intentionally left uncredited to avert confusion from audiences who possibly would have expected a comedy. The screenplay was adapted by Lynch, Christopher De Vore, and Eric Bergren from Frederick Treves's The Elephant Man and Other Reminiscences (1923) and Ashley Montagu's The Elephant Man: 
Title: The Elephant Man (film)
Content:  to make me hate acting." Because of the strain on the actor, he worked alternate days. Lynch originally wanted Jack Nance for the title character. "But it just wasn't in the cards", Lynch says; the role went to John Hurt after Brooks, Lynch and Sanger saw his performance in The Naked Civil Servant as Quentin Crisp. Lynch bookended the film with surrealist sequences centered around Merrick's mother and her death. Lynch used Samuel Barber's Adagio for Strings to underline the end of the film and Merrick's own death. The film's composer, John Morris, argued against using the music, stating that "this piece is 
Title: The Elephant Man (1982 film)
Content: Philip Anglim as John Merrick ; Kevin Conway as Frederick Treves ; Penny Fuller as Mrs. Kendal ; Glenn Close as Princess Alexandra 
Title: Her Elephant Man
Content:  Her Elephant Man is a 1920 American silent drama film directed by Scott R. Dunlap and starring Shirley Mason, Alan Roscoe, Henry Hebert, Ardita Mellinina, and Harry Todd. It is based on the 1919 novel Her Elephant Man: A Story of the Sawdust Ring by Pearl Doles Bell. The film was released by Fox Film Corporation in February 1920.
Title: The Elephant Man (1982 film)
Content:  The Elephant Man is a 1982 American biographical television film directed by Jack Hofsiss about the 19th-century English medical curiosity Joseph Merrick (known in this film as John Merrick). The script was adapted by Steve Lawson from the 1977 play of the same name by Bernard Pomerance. It was first broadcast by the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) on January 4, 1982. Playwright Pomerance's Broadway debut of The Elephant Man in 1977 was directed by Hofsiss, who became the youngest ever winner of a Tony Award for directing the play. In the film, Philip Anglim and Kevin Conway reprised their roles from the play as John Merrick and Frederick Treves, respectively. The film received four Emmy Award nominations; Penny Fuller won the award for 'Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Limited Series or a Special'. At the 40th Golden Globe Awards, Philip Anglim was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor – Miniseries or Television Film. Jack Hofsiss was nominated for a Directors Guild of America Award for 'Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Dramatic Specials'.
Title: The Elephant Man (play)
Content:  The play was adapted for television by Steve Lawson and broadcast in 1982 on ABC. Philip Anglim reprised his Broadway performance and Hofsiss returned to direct. Actress Penny Fuller received an Emmy Award for her performance as Mrs. Kendal. A radio drama adaptation by the BBC World Service was broadcast in 1988. It was directed by David Hitchenson and starred Gerard Murphy as John Merrick the elephant man; Jeremy Clyde as Frederick Treves the doctor; Anna Massey as actress Mrs. Kendal.
Title: The Elephant Man (film)
Content:  Jonathan Sanger, the film's producer, optioned the script from the writers Christopher Devore and Eric Bergren after receiving the script from his babysitter. Sanger had been working as Mel Brooks' assistant director on High Anxiety. Sanger showed Brooks the script, which he read and decided to help finance the film through Brooksfilms, his new company. Brooks' personal assistant, Stuart Cornfeld, suggested David Lynch to Sanger. Sanger met Lynch and they shared scripts they were working on (The Elephant Man and Lynch's Ronnie Rocket). Lynch told Sanger that he would love to direct the script after reading it, and Sanger endorsed him after hearing 
Title: The Elephant Man (film)
Content:  Study in Human Dignity (1971). It was shot in black-and-white and featured make-up work by Christopher Tucker. The Elephant Man was a critical and commercial success with eight Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Actor. After receiving widespread criticism for failing to honor the film's make-up effects, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was prompted to create the Academy Award for Best Makeup the following year. The film also won the BAFTA Awards for Best Film, Best Actor, and Best Production Design and was nominated for Golden Globe awards. It also won a French César Award for Best Foreign Film.

Question: who played the elephant man in the film?
Answer: John Hurt.