Oscar-winner Guillermo del Toro has revealed that he wants to make a Frankenstein movie trilogy. Del Toro has been a big name in Hollywood for a long time now, and he has always had a particular fascination with monsters. But The Shape of Water put him on a whole new level. During a panel for [email protected], the filmmaker revealed that he would love to adapt Mary Shelley’s timeless novel, provided the opportunity.
San Deigo Comic-Con isn’t happening as per usual this year. Instead, an online version of the event has been taking place over the weekend. Guillermo del Toro participated in a panel for Antlers, which he produced, alongside director Scott Cooper. During the conversation, they were asked what project they would make if they were afforded the budget and a green light from the studio. Here’s what del Toro had to say about it.
“I would do either At the Mountains of Madness or Frankenstein, which I’ve always envisioned as a two to three-part story. Because, in order to encompass the book, you have to change points of view. It’s a complex exercise. “
First off, At the Mountains of Madness has sort of become Guillermo del Toro’s white whale at this point. Del Toro spent a great deal of time developing H.P. Lovecraft’s classic novel for the big screen, with Tom Cruise attached to star. They were very close to filming at one point before the plug was pulled. Part of the problem is that, to do it right and to match del Toro’s vision, it would be very expensive. Even with the track record del Toro has, this is not an easy sell but clearly something that is still rattling around in the back of his mind.
But the idea of Frankenstein, even in such an ambitious way, seems a bit more feasible right now. Universal Pictures is currently rebooting its classic monsters following the failure of the Dark Universe concept. Tom Cruise’s The Mummy didn’t kickstart the planned cinematic universe like they had hoped. Bill Condon had been developing a Bride of Frankenstein remake as part of that Universal Monsters universe. However, this year’s The Invisible Man proved to be a huge hit, leading the studio to take a filmmaker-first approach. They have since started developing other projects, such as a new Wolfman movie starring Ryan Gosling.
Rumors were circulating last year that Jams Wan (The Conjuring, Aquaman) had his sights set on a new Frankenstein movie, but that has yet to be confirmed. Meanwhile, Guillermo del Toro is busy with Nightmare Alley. The movie had begun filming earlier this year before the widespread production shutdown kicked in. Once things settle down, del Toro will resume filming. There is no word yet on a release date but that will likely keep him busy well into 2021. He also has his long-gestating Pinnochio movie at Netflix. So, even if he did get his wish, Frankenstein would be a long way off. This news comes to us via Comic-Con.org.
