While Guillermo del Toro has earned a rabid fan base through genre stalwarts like Pacific Rim and Hellboy, films like those are admittedly a hard sell with audience – and even harder to sell to studios. So what we've got to say will sound like bad news, but we promise it's nothing but good news: Guillermo del Toro is almost done with "big" movies.
Speaking with The Guardian, del Toro mentioned the fact that he's been offered huge ticket projects that he eventually turned down. His reasoning is pretty much everything you'd expect, as seen in the quote below:
What I can tell you quite safely is, I don’t intend to keep on doing big, giant Hollywood movies for much longer. ‘Crimson Peak’ is a great permit for me to work on a smaller scale. I mean, it’s big for a drama, but it’s a much smaller undertaking than 'Pacific Rim' or 'Hellboy'
Throughout his recent press tour for Crimson Peak, we have seen both Pacific Rim 2 and Hellboy III mentioned time and time again, with their fortunes being cast into further doubt with each mention. The former picture, which was placed on indefinite hold after a spat between Universal and Legendary Pictures got real, is still a pet project of Guillermo del Toro's. Though that film stands a better shot of getting made than a second Hellboy sequel does, as studios aren't fighting to cough up the money needed for one last showdown between Ron Perlman's beloved bad ass and the forces of darkness.
One could say that Guillermo del Toro has lost faith in the studio system, and who could blame him? Ever since Mimic, his first Hollywood film, del Toro has had a string of studio notes, tampering hands, and other pitfalls that have gotten in the way of what he loves doing. But it doesn't sound like he's throwing in the metaphorical towel, rather it seems like he's returning to the fields that his most fertile ideas grow out of. With a film like Crimson Peak, the budget isn't terribly high, so the pressure shouldn't be terribly high for the film to recoup its investment. Considering Universal's been having a banner year with their box office grosses, and Pacific Rim 2 no longer seems like a going concern, del Toro officially has nothing to lose and everything to gain.
So what will the future of Guillermo del Toro hold? All we know is that his next film will be "small and weird," while filmed in black and white. Of course, this could all change at the drop of a hat, and even del Toro himself knows it. In a recent press conference for Crimson Peak, he was overheard giving a choice piece of advice: "If you want to make God laugh, tell him what your next movie is going to be."
In the case of audiences hungry for his latest material, del Toro's next film is Crimson Peak,, and we can safely tell you that it's going to be in theaters this Friday.
