Guillermo del Toro has made his thoughts on the use of AI in filmmaking very clear, saying he would “rather die” than work with artificial intelligence.
The triple Oscar winner drew parallels between the tech bros who are using the technology to the “arrogance” of Frankenstein, the Mary Shelley character who he is bringing to screens with his new Netflix film.
Speaking to NPR, the Pan’s Labyrinth and Shape of Water filmmaker, 61, said that “natural stupidity… is what drives most of the world’s worst features”.
He said he wanted his take on Frankenstein to “be similar in some ways to the tech bros”, adding: “He’s kind of blind, creating something without considering the consequences and I think we have to take a pause and consider where we're going.”
He added: “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, said, ‘What is your stance on AI?’ And my answer was very short. I said, ‘I’d rather die.’”
Del Toro’s Frankenstein, out on Netflix on 7 November, is adapted from Shelley’s 1818 novel, and stars Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, Mia Goth, Christoph Waltz and Ralph Ineson.
The filmmaker, known for his gothic and fantastical style of storytelling, won the Best Director and Best Picture Oscars for his dark romantic fantasy film The Shape of Water in 2018. His 2023 fantasy movie Pinocchio also won Best Animated Feature in 2023.
Del Toro is the latest figure in the industry to weigh in on the debate around AI.
Last month, Hollywood stars spoke out in protest after an “AI actress” named Tilly Norwood attracted agency interest.
The 2023 strike by SAG-AFTRA, the Hollywood union representing 160,000 television and movie actors, was partly related to concerns over the rise of AI in filmmaking.
Over the past decade, AI has found several uses in the movie and television industry, from de-ageing actors, analysing patterns and behaviours of viewers on streaming platforms, resurrecting voices of late actors and even helping stitch together entire movie trailers.
In July, Netflix announced it had used generative AI in one of its shows for the first time in a move to help make “cheaper” and “better” films and TV series.
Co-chief executive Ted Sarandos confirmed with analysts that Argentinian sci-fi show The Eternaut had become the first show to use AI on the platform.
According to Sarandos, the Spanish-language series, which follows the survivors of a lethal snowfall that decimates the population, used AI to depict a building collapsing in Buenos Aires. He said: “That sequence actually is the very first AI final footage to appear on screen in a Netflix original series or film. So the creators were thrilled with the result.”
