The Body Snatcher is a 1945 American horror film directed by Robert Wise and starring Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, Henry Daniell, and Edith Atwater. It is based on the short story "The Body Snatcher" by Robert Louis Stevenson. The film's producer Val Lewton helped adapt the story for the screen, writing under the pen name of "Carlos Keith". The film was marketed with the tagline "The screen's last word in shock sensation!" The frequent mentions of Burke, Hare, and Dr. Knox, all refer to the West Port murders in 1828.