Guillermo del Toro Shares His Thoughts on Making Another Comic Book Movie

Eve prior to his Oscar-winning movie The Shape of Water (2017), renowned director Guillermo del Toro was no stranger to genre fiction, having directed comic book adaptations including Hellboy and Blade II. Given this record, many have wondered whether del Toro would ever make a return to comic book films--and recently, the director shared his thoughts.

Speaking with Variety (via ComicBook.com), del Toro explained that his priority as a filmmaker are his passions, no matter the topic. When the topic of comic book adaptations came up, he shared, “At each moment of your life, you do the things that attract you. And back when I was doing Hellboy and Blade, it was a little bit counter to what was being made.”

“But as you grow older, your concerns as a filmmaker change,” del Toro continued. “I only direct the things that I’m incredibly avid to see, and that would not exist if I didn’t tackle it. I always ask myself, ‘would this movie exist if I didn’t make it?’ And if the answer is yes, I don’t do it.”

At the time of their release, del Toro’s Blade II and his Hellboy films were some of the only serious comic book adaptations on the market, coming years before Christopher Nolan’s Batman series or any of the Marvel Cinematic Universe films. Though del Toro was briefly entangled with a production of the supernatural-themed Justice League Dark, he has since moved on from the project, and is focusing on non-comic book work like Pinocchio.

Both of the director's comic book ventures have since seen a resurgence, with Hellboy receiving a reboot this year and a new Blade film starring Mahershala Ali being announced by Marvel Studios.

As much as we’d love to see del Toro’s take on another comic book film, we understand his desire to make new and different projects for the time being.