News Frankenstein Guillermo del Toro Calls Frankenstein‘s Limited Theatrical Release an “Easy Decision” Meanwhile, the Duffer Brothers offered a different perspective on Netflix’s theatrical release strategy By Matthew Byrd | Published on August 21, 2025 Photo: Netflix Comment 0 Share New Share Photo: Netflix In an extensive interview with Variety, Frankenstein director Guillermo del Toro discusses his incredible vision for a massive movie that he estimates ultimately cost around $120 million to make. Given the scope of that project and the director’s love for film and film culture, some were surprised to learn that Frankenstein will only receive a three-week theatrical run starting on October 17 before arriving on Netflix on November 7. It’s enough to put the movie in potential awards consideration, but it may not be enough to ensure that everyone gets to see this legendary director’s passion project on the big screen.  And while many (including the film’s co-stars Jacob Elordi and Oscar Isaac) argue that you should see the movie in theaters if at all possible, del Toro offers a slightly different perspective on the practicalities of this release strategy.  “Well, we will get the biggest theatrical release that Netflix gives its films,” says del Toro of Frankenstein. “The theatrical experience is very important. I believe in it. But if the choice is between being able to make the movie and have portions of the release be theatrical and portions be streaming or not make the movie, that’s an easy decision to make. For a filmmaker, you want to tell your stories.” Del Toro also mentions that Frankenstein can “stay in theaters longer” and that Netflix will eventually release the movie on physical media, but the core of his argument is largely unaffected by those variables. Del Toro’s suggestion that Frankenstein may not exist in this (or any) form if it wasn’t for Netflix harkens back to the reasons why so many legendary filmmakers flocked to the streaming service in the first place.  Netflix has fairly consistently offered creators ample resources to pursue their passion projects. The trade-off for those resources has long been the understanding that their projects will debut on Netflix. The streaming service has become slightly more open to limited theatrical runs over the years (largely for the aforementioned awards season considerations), but the lack of a full theatrical release has long been the devil in the details. For Guillermo del Toro, that arrangement seems easy to make peace with if it enables larger creative opportunities.  Yet, it’s very much worth mentioning that we’ve recently seen some rebellions against that arrangement. Most notably, Stranger Things creators the Duffer Brothers recently left Netflix for Paramount largely due to their desire to make projects that get a proper theatrical run. Netflix hit KPop Demon Hunters is also due to get a post-release limited theatrical run in the near future, and it’s been noted that some within Sony now regret their decision to give Netflix the rights to that project rather than trust it to receive what could have been an incredibly lucrative theatrical run.  It is fairly easy to assume that Guillermo del Toro would have chosen to give his vision for Frankenstein a full theatrical run if a studio had offered him sufficient resources to make that happen. Whether more studios decide to make more of those offers in the future may very well determine Netflix’s relationship with such creators and the future of the streaming vs. theatrical system. [end-mark] The post Guillermo del Toro Calls <i>Frankenstein</i>‘s Limited Theatrical Release an “Easy Decision” appeared first on Reactor.