Netflix is developing not one but two Frankenstein movies, and they could make up for Universal’s most recent failed cinematic universe of monsters. Frankenstein is the classic Mary Shelley novel about a sympathetic monster that readers could relate to even when he was wreaking havoc. The character was rejected by society for the way he looked, and as a result, resorted to violence because he couldn’t cope with the conflicted feelings he had. Ever since 1931, there have been a number of media adaptations of the classic novel, with the many Frankenstein movies making the titular scientist’s monster just as much of an iconic screen presence as he is a literary character.
Universal tried to remake Frankenstein in the 2010s with Javier Bardem playing Frankenstein’s monster, but that Dark Universe movie was canceled following the failure of The Mummy reboot. The 2017 Tom Cruise-starring movie was planned to be the start of a new cinematic universe of monsters until The Mummy underperformed at the box office and was critically scathed. The Dark Universe was also meant to include a Bride of Frankenstein movie, which was similarly scrapped following The Mummy’s failure. Now, Netflix is releasing two Frankenstein movies within a surprisingly short timeframe of one another, leading to speculation about whether they’re connected and if Netflix can achieve what Universal couldn’t.
Netflix’s Two Frankenstein Movies Explained
Two Frankenstein-based movies are currently in development for Netflix; one from visionary filmmaker Guillermo Del Toro (Pan’s Labyrinth, The Shape of Water) and another from actor/director Maggie Gyllenhaal. Guillermo Del Toro’s long-awaited Frankenstein movie began production in February 2023, and it sports a cast of Academy Award winners and nominees that includes Oscar Isaac, Andrew Garfield, and Christoph Waltz. Mia Goth also joins the cast, with Frankenstein adding to her scream-queen resume of horror movies including X, Pearl, and Infinity Pool.
Del Toro is the perfect filmmaker to remake Frankenstein, as the original 1931 movie is a personal favorite of the director (via BFI). Furthermore, some of Guillermo del Toro’s best movies are about conflicted and sympathetic monsters, such as Amphibian Man in The Shape of Water and the titular character in Hellboy; the director knows exactly how to tap into Frankenstein’s monster’s mindset. Given that 1931’s Frankenstein seemingly shaped del Toro’s storytelling formula, it only makes sense that he personally makes a new version of the story for Netflix, especially as del Toro has been developing Frankenstein for 15 years.
Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Bride of Frankenstein will begin production in 2024. It’s again unknown how much of a direct remake of the original 1935 movie it will be, but the film also sports an impressive cast so far. Bride of Frankenstein will star Christian Bale and Peter Sarsgaard, though their roles in the project are currently undisclosed. While Gyllenhaal is better known as an actor, starring in movies such as The Dark Knight, she also directed the 2021 movie The Lost Daughter. The movie was overwhelmingly positively received with 94% on Rotten Tomatoes, which bodes well for the upcoming Netflix movie.
Netflix’s Frankenstein Movies Aren’t In The Same Universe (That We Know Of)
It hasn’t been confirmed that Netflix’s Frankenstein and Bride of Frankenstein are related, but the fact that the movies are being developed at the same time certainly raises eyebrows. However, while much of the cast is still yet to be confirmed for both projects, neither of the two movies share any of the same actors. Both movies’ casts are outstanding so far, but they’re completely different. Additionally, given that del Toro has been working on his Frankenstein for 15 years, it’s unlikely that it’s tied into Bride of Frankenstein unless the Gyllenhaal movie retroactively included connections.
Furthermore, del Toro previously parted ways with the Frankenstein project in the 2010s when it was being developed at Universal, as Universal wanted to tie his project into a greater universe influenced by the MCU (via Collider), which presumably became the Universal Dark Universe. Based on that, it’s unlikely that del Toro would have agreed to make his Frankenstein movie part of a greater Netflix monster universe. However, the filmmaker has made franchise movies before with both the Hellboy and Blade series, and if Netflix gave him enough creative freedom, there’s a chance that the del Toro movie could still link to Maggie Gyllenhaal’s Bride of Frankenstein.
Netflix’s New Frankenstein Films Can Succeed Where The Dark Universe Failed
Based on Universal’s treatment of the Dark Universe and the studio’s Dracula movies, the odds of a Dark Universe Frankenstein movie being great were low. As exemplified by Renfield‘s box office failure, Universal has recently struggled to find a way to make Dracula – a world-famous vampire – successful, so it’s likely that Frankenstein would have run into the same problems. In that respect, by hiring respected filmmakers and greenlighting a budget that allows such a heavyweight cast, Netflix could deliver a better shared universe involving Frankenstein’s monster. However, the two upcoming Frankenstein movies for Netflix still sound extremely promising regardless of whether they’re connected.
Even if the two projects aren’t connected, they both sound thrilling in their own right, as each boasts an incredible cast and comes from a visionary director who will likely have creative freedom. With the likes of Dracula and The Invisible Man, other iconic literary monsters have a more notable presence in modern cinema than Frankenstein’s monster. The lack of a proper Frankenstein movie arguably means the original story’s legacy has been preserved much better than those other iconic monsters; there hasn’t been a “fresh” Dracula movie on Rotten Tomatoes since 1992’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula. Frankenstein hasn’t had that problem, and because the character hasn’t been diluted, these two upcoming films could be hugely popular and exciting, potentially inspiring additional movie remakes for underrepresented monsters.
Sources: BFI, Collider
Key Release Dates
Bride of Frankenstein
Release Date:1935-04-22
