Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein film is reportedly a go at Netflix, with three major stars circling the project. The iconic 1818 Mary Shelley novel, which is usually credited as the beginning of the modern science fiction genre, has been adapted to film many times, most famously in James Whale's 1931 Frankenstein, which kicked off a successful run of Universal monster films. The novel tells the story of scientist Victor Frankenstein, whose experiments in bringing the dead to life succeed with violent results as his monstrous creation is rejected by society at large.
Deadline is currently reporting that del Toro's Frankenstein is moving forward at Netflix after his Oscar win for his stop-motion animated feature Pinocchio. According to their report, the director is currently in talks with three major stars to hold lead roles in his take on Frankenstein: Andrew Garfield, Oscar Isaac, and Mia Goth. Neither Isaac nor Garfield have much experience in the horror genre (though Isaac did voice Gomez in the animated Addams Family movies), but Goth comes as a ready-made scream queen after roles in X, Pearl, Suspiria 2018, A Cure for Wellness, and Infinity Pool.
Why Guillermo del Toro is the Perfect Director for Frankenstein
Over the centuries, many famous artists have put their own stamp on the characters, including manga icon Junji Ito and comedy legend Mel Brooks. Time and time again, the story has proved itself flexible enough to match the tone and themes of any era. It was even the major inspiration for the 1975 cult musical The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
Del Toro is an excellent person to pick up this mantle. In his previous works including Pan's Labyrinth and Crimson Peak, the director has shown a sensibility for bringing dark adult themes to fairy tales and effortlessly bringing Gothic atmosphere to life. His predilection for showing sensitivity to characters deemed monstrous - a necessary element for any Frankenstein story - has also been revealed by his Best Picture-winning outing The Shape of Water.
His Frankenstein would also fit in perfectly with how the characters have progressed onscreen throughout the decades. The major Frankenstein franchise that arose after Universal's came from the UK's Hammer Films, which brought lurid color, sexuality, and violence to the tale with their films, beginning with 1957's The Curse of Frankenstein starring Christopher Lee and Peter Cushing. With Netflix behind him, Del Toro will be able to push that sensibility even further into an unforgettable mixture of the beautiful and the horrible.
Source: Deadline