Toronto, September 10, 2025 – Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro says Toronto has been central to his filmmaking journey, crediting the city’s loyal crews for helping him realize his long-awaited adaptation of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. The film, starring Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein and Jacob Elordi as the monster, premiered in North America this week at the Toronto International Film Festival, in the same city where much of it was filmed on sprawling custom-built sets.
Del Toro said his decision to film in Toronto was deliberate, built on years of trust in Canadian craftsmanship across wardrobe, set design, and prop construction. “I don’t think I’ve ever encountered craftsmanship that I can trust and rely on artistically more than in Canada,” he said. “These are people I’ve worked with through decades, and they always deliver excellence.”
His bond with Toronto crews stretches back to Mimic, his 1996 Hollywood debut, a notoriously troubled shoot under producer Bob Weinstein. Despite clashes, del Toro said the warmth of the Toronto crew kept him going, recalling moments when, after heated disputes, the crew would applaud him in support. That loyalty has endured: Tamara Deverell, his first assistant director on Mimic, is among the team members still working with him on Frankenstein nearly three decades later, alongside many who also contributed to Pacific Rim and the Academy Award-winning The Shape of Water.
Del Toro, who recently received the key to the City of Toronto, called the city a true filmmaking home. “I love this city and I’ve felt really appreciated here since 1996,” he said. “It’s just a city that loves film. Canadians have a difficult time praising Toronto. I don’t.”
Frankenstein will open in select theatres on October 17 before its Netflix release on November 7.