Guillermo del Toro
Born: 1964-10-09 in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico
Known For: Directing
Biography
Guillermo del Toro Gómez (Spanish: [ɡiˈʝeɾmo ðelˈtoɾo]; born 9 October 1964) is a Mexican filmmaker, author, and artist. His work has been characterized by a strong connection to fairy tales, gothicism, and horror, often blending the genres to infuse visual or poetic beauty into the grotesque. He has had a lifelong fascination with monsters, which he considers symbols of great power. He is known for pioneering dark fantasy in the film industry and using insectile and religious imagery, his themes of Catholicism, and celebrating imperfection, underworld motifs, practical special effects, and dominant amber lighting. Throughout his career, del Toro has shifted between Spanish-language films—such as Cronos (1993), The Devil's Backbone (2001), and Pan's Labyrinth (2006)—and English-language films, including Mimic (1997), Blade II (2002), Hellboy (2004) and its sequel Hellboy II: The Golden Army(2008), Pacific Rim (2013), Crimson Peak (2015), The Shape of Water (2017), Nightmare Alley (2021), and Pinocchio (2022). As a producer or writer, he worked on the films The Orphanage (2007), Don't Be Afraid of the Dark (2010), The Hobbit film series (2012–2014), Mama (2013), The Book of Life (2014), Pacific Rim: Uprising (2018), Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019), and The Witches (2020). In 2022, he created the Netflix anthology horror series Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities, featuring a collection of classical horror stories. With Chuck Hogan, he co-authored The Strain trilogy of novels (2009–2011), which was later adapted into a comic book series (2011–15) and a live-action television series (2014–17). With DreamWorks Animation and Netflix, he created the animated franchise Tales of Arcadia, which includes the series Trollhunters (2016–18), 3Below (2018–19), and Wizards (2020) and the sequel film Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans (2021). Del Toro is close friends with fellow Mexican filmmakers Alfonso Cuarón and Alejandro G. Iñárritu, collectively known as "The Three Amigos of Mexican Cinema". He has received several awards, including three Academy Awards, three BAFTA Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Daytime Emmy Award, and a Golden Lion. He was included in Time magazine's list of the 100 most influential people in the world in 2018, and he received a motion picture star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2019.
Filmography
2025
- Frankenstein ... (Producer)
- Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery ... (Thanks)
- The Monkey ... (Thanks)
- Sangre del Toro as Self
- Netflix Tudum 2025 as Self
- Surrealistic Nightmares: An In-Depth Look at Walloon Horror Cinema as Self
- Jaws @ 50: The Definitive Inside Story as Self
- Frankenstein: The Anatomy Lesson as Self - Writer / Director
- It’s a Mad Max World as Self (archive) - filmmaker
- Mollusk
- The Hanging of Stuart Cornfeld
- Guillermo del Toro Behind the Scenes of Frankenstein with Oscar Isaac & Jacob Elordi as Self
2024
- Disclaimer ... (Thanks)
- The Apprentice ... (Thanks)
- Megalopolis ... (Thanks)
- Dario Argento: Panico as Self
- Leonardo da Vinci as Self
2023
2022
- Guillermo del Toro's Cabinet of Curiosities as Self - Host (uncredited)
- Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio ... (Screenstory)
- Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio: Handcarved Cinema as Self
- Mike Mignola: Drawing Monsters as Self
- Boris Karloff: The Rest of the Story as Self
2021
- Nightmare Alley ... (Director)
- Trollhunters: Rise of the Titans ... (Screenplay)
- Antlers ... (Producer)
- Boris Karloff: The Man Behind the Monster as Self
- Variety Studio: Directors on Directors as Self
2020
- Roald Dahl's The Witches ... (Producer)
- Wizards: Tales of Arcadia ... (Executive Producer)
- Clapboard Jungle: Surviving the Independent Film Business as Self
- I'm No Longer Here: A Discussion with Guillermo del Toro and Alfonso Cuarón as Self
2019
- Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark ... (Screenstory)
- The House Is Alive: Constructing 'Crimson Peak' as Self
- Making Apes: The Artists Who Changed Film as Self
- Love, Antosha as Self
- Elvis Goes There as Self
2018
- Barry as El Toro
- Pacific Rim: Uprising ... (Producer)
- 3Below: Tales of Arcadia ... (Executive Producer)
- James Cameron's Story of Science Fiction as Self
- Light in the Darkness: The Impact of Night of The Living Dead as Self
- Ayotzinapa: The Turtle's Pace ... (Producer)
- Bloody And Groovy Baby! A Tribute to Sam Raimi's Evil Dead 2
- Guillermo del Toro: Un director y su Oscar as Guillermo del Toro
2017
- The Shape of Water ... (Producer)
- Five Came Back as Self
- 78/52 as Self
- Five Came Back as Self
- When Romero Met Del Toro
2016
- Kung Fu Panda 3 ... (Executive Producer)
- Trollhunters: Tales of Arcadia ... (Executive Producer)
- The Giant's Dream: The Making of the Iron Giant as Self
- I Remember Crimson Peak as Himself
- Hand Tailored Gothic as Self
- The Light and Dark of Crimson Peak as Self
- A Living Thing
- Crimson Phantoms
2015
- The Late Show with Stephen Colbert as Self
- The Late Late Show with James Corden as Self - Guest
- Close Up with The Hollywood Reporter as Self
- Crimson Peak ... (Director)
- Creature Designers: The Frankenstein Complex as Self
- The Thin Yellow Line ... (Producer)
- Metal Gear Solid: Legacy as Self
- The First Hundred Feet, the Last Hundred Feet as Self
2014
- The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies ... (Screenplay)
- The Strain ... (Writer)
- How to Train Your Dragon 2 ... (Thanks)
- The Book of Life as Land of the Remembered Captain's Wife (voice)
- Lennon or McCartney as Self
- The Director's Chair as Self
- The Game Awards as Self
- Guillermo del Toro Interviews Paul Williams as Self
2013
- The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug ... (Screenplay)
- Pacific Rim ... (Director)
- Mama ... (Executive Producer)
- Extraordinary Tales as Narrator (voice) (segment 'The Pit and the Pendulum')
- Drew: The Man Behind the Poster as Self
- Gravity ... (Thanks)
- The Fire Rises: The Creation and Impact of The Dark Knight Trilogy as Self
- Necessary Evil: Super-Villains of DC Comics as Self
- The Digital Artistry of Pacific Rim as Self
- Spanish Gothic as Self
2012
- The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey ... (Screenplay)
- Rise of the Guardians ... (Executive Producer)
- Horror Europa with Mark Gatiss as Self
- El Santos vs la Tetona Mendoza as Gamborimbo Ponx (voice)
- Ray Harryhausen: Special Effects Titan as Self
- Men in Suits as Self
- The Captured Bird ... (Executive Producer)
2011
- Kung Fu Panda 2 ... (Creative Consultant)
- Puss in Boots as Comandante / Hombre del bigote (voice)
- Reclaiming 'Mimic' as Self
- Comic-Con Episode IV: A Fan's Hope as Self
- Zombie Lover as Interviewee
- Back Into the Tunnels: The Making of 'Mimic' as Self
- A Leap in Evolution: The Creatures of 'Mimic' as Self
2010
- Megamind ... (Creative Consultant)
- Scott Pilgrim vs. the World ... (Thanks)
- Don't Be Afraid of the Dark as Creature (Voice)
- Splice ... (Producer)
- Julia's Eyes ... (Producer)
- Biutiful ... (Associate Producer)
- BlackBoxTV Presents ... (Producer)
2009
- District 9 ... (Thanks)
- The Master's Touch: Hitchcock's Signature Style as Self
- North by Northwest: One for the Ages as Self
- Rage ... (Producer)
- Fasten Your Seatbelt: The Thrilling Art of Alfred Hitchcock as Self
2008
- Hellboy II: The Golden Army as Creature Vocals (voice) (uncredited)
- Quantum of Solace as Additional Voices (voice)
- Insignificant Things ... (Producer)
- Rudo & Cursi ... (Producer)
- The Masterpiece That Almost Wasn't as Self
- While She Was Out ... (Executive Producer)
- Hellboy II: The Golden Army - Zinco Epilogue ... (Screenplay)
- Lovecraft: Fear of the Unknown as Self
- Hellboy: In Service of the Demon as Self
- Hellboy II: The Golden Army - Prologue ... (Screenplay)
- Pure Cinema: Through the Eyes of Hitchcock as Self
- El último truco as Self
- Edith Head: Dressing the Master's Movies as Self
- Starz Inside: Comic Books Unbound as Self
- In the Master's Shadow: Hitchcock's Legacy as Self
- Saul Bass: Title Champ as Self
- Bernard Herrmann: Hitchcock's Maestro as Self
- Partners in Crime: Hitchcock's Collaborators as Self
- Drew Struzan: An Appreciation of An Artist as Self
2007
- The Orphanage ... (Executive Producer)
- Dangerous Days: Making Blade Runner as Self
- Diary of the Dead as Newsreader (voice) (uncredited)
- 07 Spaceys
- Hellboy Animated: Blood and Iron ... (Creative Producer)
- Deck-A-Rep: The True Nature of Rick Deckard as Self
- Nexus Generation: Fans & Filmmakers as Self
- Year of the Nail ... (Thanks)
- Pan and the Fairies as Self
- The Melody Echoes the Fairy Tale as Self
- The Color and the Shape as Self
- The Power of Myth as Self
2006
- Pan's Labyrinth ... (Director)
- Hellboy Animated: Sword of Storms ... (Creative Producer)
2005
- It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia as Pappy McPoyle
- Torrente 3: The Protector as Contacto Giannina (scenes deleted)
- Shadows in the Dark: The Val Lewton Legacy
- Home Delivery ... (Presenter)
2004
- Hellboy as Guy Dressed as Dragon (uncredited)
- Crónicas ... (Producer)
- Hellboy: The Seeds of Creation as Self
- Que es un Fantasma?: The Making of 'The Devil's Backbone' as Self
2003
- Jimmy Kimmel Live! as Self
- Noin as Guillermo del Toro
2002
- Blade II ... (Director)
- Masters of Horror as Self
- The Blood Pact: The Making of 'Blade II' as Self
- HypaSpace as Self
- I Murder Seriously ... (Executive Producer)
2001
- Y Tu Mamá También ... (Thanks)
- Mimic 2 ... (Characters)
- The Devil's Backbone ... (Screenplay)
2000
- Amores Perros ... (Editorial Coordinator)
- Bullfighter as Bullboy #2
1999
- Futurama as Guillermo del Toro's Head (voice)
- Under a Spell ... (Producer)
1997
- Mimic ... (Screenplay)
1995
- Algunas nubes ... (Makeup Effects)
1993
- Cronos as Man Walking Dog (uncredited)
1992
- Sólo con tu pareja ... (Thanks)
1991
- Cabeza de Vaca ... (Makeup Effects Designer)
1990
- Dying in the Gulf ... (Makeup Effects)
1989
- The Simpsons as Guillermo del Toro (voice)
- Love Lies ... (Makeup Effects)
- Goitia: A God for Himself ... (Special Effects Makeup Artist)
1988
- The Marked Hour ... (Director)
1986
- Mrs. Lupe ... (Director)
1985
- Doña Herlinda and Her Son ... (Executive Producer)
1953
- The Oscars as Self
1944
- Golden Globe Awards as Self - Nominee