Frankenstein heads to Venice and beyond

Jacob Elordi and Oscar Isaac discuss their roles in Guillermo del Toro Frankenstein and Netflix plan for a major theater release.

Frankenstein Big Bet on Cinema and Streaming

Frankenstein from Guillermo del Toro is moving toward a big screen experience with a strong streaming follow up. The film has a reported budget of about 120 million dollars and was shot on expansive sets in Toronto and Scotland. Elordi spent up to ten hours in makeup each day as he transformed into the creature, while Oscar Isaac plays Victor Frankenstein and aims to capture a performance that blends artistry with raw emotion. The project will have a theatrical window of three weeks starting October 17 before arriving on Netflix on November 7. Venice will host the film’s first high profile appearance this summer, signaling the project as a prestige release for the streamer.

The narrative places a premium on practical production elements, with the team building 360 degree lab and ship sets and avoiding heavy reliance on digital effects. Del Toro has spoken of assembling a world for the actors to inhabit rather than relying on CGI, and he views the film as a study in forgiveness and human connection rather than pure horror. The casting story is a major part of the tale, with Elordi joining after Andrew Garfield withdrew and Isaac being Del Toro’s first choice long before a script existed. Elordi’s immersion in the role included learning a new gait, voice work, and a regimen that blurred the lines between performance and endurance.

The Frankenstein project sits at the crossroads of prestige cinema and a streaming giant. Netflix is backing a production that seeks awards attention while promising a robust cinematic experience in theaters first. The emphasis on real sets and a lengthy, labor intensive shoot signals a belief that audiences still crave shared, communal movie moments even as streaming dominates viewing habits. The collaboration also highlights a broader industry bet on director driven, high concept genre films as a way to sustain expansion in a crowded market.

At the same time, the budget and the careful rollout raise questions about profitability and risk. If the film lands with critics and festival audiences, the payoff could reinforce a model where streaming services finance ambitious cinema that also plays well in awards season. If reception falters, the price tag and the heavy production demands could become a talking point about sustainability and the value of big bets in a streaming era that prizes both spectacle and data.

Highlights

The monster in this story may be the industry itself as it tests how far cinema can travel with streaming in its wake.