Because the book was rewritten and adapted over nearly a century, there are three distinct versions of the story:

: Starring Sophia Lillis, this version reimagines Nancy as a skateboarding outsider who gets into trouble and is sentenced to community service after pulling a prank on a bully. It modernizes the mystery with elements like social media, cyberbullying, and even lab-based chemical analysis. Intriguing Trivia The Hidden Staircase - Nancy Drew Wiki

: Penned by Mildred Wirt Benson, this is the "sassy" Nancy. In this version, she is 16 years old, independent, and even carries a gun given to her by her father for protection. It features a simpler, darker plot where Nancy is often alone and faces more genuine peril, such as being trapped in a subterranean passage with rats.

: This is the version most readers find today (the "yellow-spine" books). Nancy was aged up to 18, and her personality was softened to be more "proper" and law-abiding. The plot became more complex, adding a dual mystery involving her father's kidnapping.