Guillermo del Toro has spent his career redefining what monsters mean on screen. From Pan’s Labyrinth to The Shape of Water, his films transform creatures into symbols of longing, tragedy, and resilience. Now, with Frankenstein, the Oscar-winning filmmaker finally tackles the story that has haunted him since childhood: Mary Shelley’s seminal 1818 novel.

The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival on August 30, 2025 — fittingly, on Mary Shelley’s birthday, “Frankenstein Day.” It will open in select theaters October 17 before streaming on Netflix, November 7.

The film stars Oscar Isaac as Victor Frankenstein, a brilliant yet tormented scientist consumed by ambition. His unearthly creation is played by Jacob Elordi, offering a performance that blends physical power with an unnerving capacity for growth.

Mia Goth co-stars as Elizabeth, Victor’s fiancée, whose life is caught in the turmoil between man and monster. Together, the trio drive a story that blurs the boundaries of love, science, and madness.

At its core, Frankenstein asks the same question Shelley posed more than two centuries ago: who is the real monster?

Del Toro’s version reframes the relationship between Victor and his creation as both adversarial and symbiotic. Victor pushes the limits of human ambition; the Creature, equally dangerous and equally human, seeks love, belonging, and meaning. Together, they embody the eternal struggle between parent and child, creator and creation, humanity and its shadows.