The wait is almost over! Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein is finally coming to life. After decades of dreaming, developing, and quietly perfecting his passion project, the Oscar-winning filmmaker’s gothic reimagining will open in select theaters on October 17th, before making its global debut on Netflix November 7th, 2025.
Netflix has just released a stunning new series of character posters, giving audiences their clearest glimpse yet at the film’s haunting ensemble. The portraits spotlight Oscar Isaac as the obsessive scientist Victor Frankenstein, Jacob Elordi as the tragic Creature, Mia Goth as Elizabeth Harlander, Christoph Waltz as Heinrich Harlander, and Felix Kammerer as William Frankenstein. The supporting cast deepens the film’s rich tapestry, featuring Lars Mikkelsen, David Bradley, Christian Convery, Ralph Ineson, and Charles Dance.
At its core, Frankenstein tells the timeless tale of a man who dares to play god and the devastating ripple effects of his ambition. Del Toro’s adaptation promises not just horror, but a deeply emotional exploration of creation, identity, and sorrow, rendered in his signature style: a darkly romantic collision of beauty and monstrosity. Mia Goth, who plays Elizabeth, shared her own nerves stepping into del Toro’s cinematic cathedral of Gothic art. Speaking with Variety, she admitted:
“I’ve never been so scared stepping into a movie. I really haven’t. It was a lot for me, and I was always in my head. I kept thinking to myself, ‘Guillermo del Toro is making Frankenstein, the movie you’ve always wanted him to make — and I get to be a part of that’”.
For del Toro, the film represents both an artistic milestone and a spiritual homecoming.
“This film concludes a quest that started at age 7, when I saw James Whale’s Frankenstein films for the first time,” he shared earlier. “Gothic horror became my church, and Boris Karloff my Messiah.” (via The Hollywood Reporter)
To celebrate the release, del Toro will host an exclusive IMAX screening and Q&A at the TCL Chinese Theatre on October 31, inviting fans to attend in costume as characters from his iconic filmography — a fitting tribute to the filmmaker’s lifelong love of monsters and misfits.
Early reviews already hint at another del Toro masterpiece in the making. The film currently holds an 81% score on Rotten Tomatoes from 100 critics, with praise for its “darkly poetic tone,” “sumptuous visual language,” and Jacob Elordi’s emotionally charged portrayal of the Creature.
Following the success of The Shape of Water and Pinocchio, Frankenstein may well stand as the crown jewel in del Toro’s Gothic canon — a cinematic resurrection decades in the making, where heartache meets horror and humanity is both the creator and the curse.
As the posters tease and anticipation builds, on November 7th, when Frankenstein finally awakens on Netflix, Guillermo del Toro’s lifelong dream will become the rest of the world’s haunting obsession.
