Guillermo del Toro, the cinematic genius (or so he thinks 🙄), took a break from patting himself on the back to denounce AI in filmmaking at the Gotham Awards. Yes, the same Gotham Awards that probably use AI to write their press releases. He was there to accept the Vanguard Tribute for Frankenstein, because apparently, we haven’t had enough versions of that story already.
Joined by the eye candy, Jacob Elordi (The Creature, because who needs acting when you have abs?) and Oscar Isaac (Victor Frankenstein, slumming it for a paycheck?), the 61-year-old del Toro (who’s totally not having a mid-life crisis, guys) rambled on about Mary Shelley. Apparently, he picked up her book at 11 and thought, “I can do that, but with more monsters and probably less coherence.” 🤷♂️
Del Toro, in his infinite wisdom, declared, “I understood that back then, through her work and the first glimpse of Boris Karloff, that I did not belong in the world the way my parents, the way the world expected me to fit. That my place was in a faraway land inhabited only by monsters and misfits. They have been my kin ever since. So to return to this tale now at 61 with artists as extraordinary as Oscar and Jacob has been truly one of the greatest privileges of my life, and in them, I found another family.” Translation: “I’m a misunderstood genius who only feels at home with fictional characters and actors who are contractually obligated to be nice to me.” 🙄
After Elordi and Isaac mumbled a few words (probably about how much they were getting paid), del Toro returned to the podium to thank the cast and crew. “I’d like to tell the rest of our extraordinary cast and our crew that the artistry of all of them shines on every single frame of this film that was willfully made by humans, for humans. The designers, builders, make-up, wardrobe team, cinematographers, composers, editors, this tribute belongs to all of them.” Translation: “Please validate me. I need constant reassurance that my artistic vision is worth something.” 🥺
And then, the moment we’ve all been waiting for: the AI-bashing. Del Toro, in a move that’s both predictable and hilarious, concluded his speech with a resounding, “I would like to extend our gratitude and say f— AI.” Because, you know, robots are totally going to steal his job of making overly-stylized monster movies that are 20 minutes too long. 🤣
He even doubled down on his Luddite tendencies, declaring in October that he would “rather die” than use generative AI in his movies. Because apparently, dying is preferable to using a tool that could potentially make his movies less pretentious. 🙄 When asked if he used generative AI in his forthcoming $120 million take on Frankenstein, del Toro said on an episode of NPR’s Fresh Air podcast: “AI, particularly generative AI, I am not interested, nor will I ever be interested. I’m 61, and I hope to be able to remain uninterested in using it at all until I croak. The other day, somebody wrote me an email and said, ‘What is your stance on AI?’”My answer was very short. I said, ‘I’d rather die.’”
So, there you have it, folks. Guillermo del Toro: master filmmaker, monster enthusiast, and proud technophobe. May his Frankenstein be a box office smash (or at least not a complete embarrassment). 😜
Finn McFrame, celebrated satirical mastermind and self-proclaimed “Emperor of Irony,” started his illustrious career as a cinematographer, where his expertise in capturing every single frame of a squirrel stealing a baguette earned him accolades at obscure film festivals.
Born in the glamorous town of Boring, Oregon, Finn grew up with dreams of being a Hollywood director until he realized that satire, not cinema, was his true calling—or at least the one that let him sleep until noon.
Finn McFrame: changing the world, one satirical lens flare at a time.
