Mutiny on the Bounty is based on a pre-existing property.
Mutiny on the Bounty is an 1935 American drama film directed by Frank Lloyd and starring Charles Laughton and Clark Gable , based on the Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall novel Mutiny on the Bounty . Although its historical accuracy has been questioned ( inevitably , as it is based on a novel ) , film critics consider this adaptation to be the best cinematic work inspired by the mutiny . Mutiny on the Bounty is a 1962 American Technicolor epic historical drama film starring Marlon Brando , Trevor Howard and Richard Harris , based on the novel Mutiny on the Bounty by Charles Nordhoff and James Norman Hall .