Less than a year after Guillermo Del Toro delivered his latest big screen effort via the gothic thriller Nightmare Alley, the Oscar-winning filmmaker is returning to his horror roots for the upcoming anthology Cabinet of Curiosities, which has built up quite the impressive cast list so far. Everyone with Netflix subscriptions can look forward to seeing the new series when it debuts later in 2022 — presumably closer to the Halloween season — but we need not wait any longer to find out what to expect, thanks to the brand new teaser trailer seen above. Come for the creepy visuals, stay for the casting confirmations, including that of a Harry Potter film vet.
And what an array of skin-crawling imagery there is to behold in Cabinet of Curiosities’ first look promo. I mean, when your opening shot is of a bunch of worms crawling around a mound of dirt that is likely a grave, you’re not setting up a new Care Bears tale. Interestingly enough, this teaser is all about establishing tones and setting moods as opposed to footage geared to the stars or dialogue. But there’s definitely no shortage of cemeteries, lavish churches, mysterious interiors, freaky artwork, books that may or may not be the Necronomicon, and creepy hands emerging from unknown depths.
Did I mention taxidermied animals? Because yeah, there are taxidermied animals, among other chilling-looking creatures. Can’t go wrong with an intricately crafted spiderweb, right? I mean, walking blindly into one would be wrong, and would also cause me to squeal with unrelaxed animosity.
Coming back around to the casting news side of things, Cabinets of Curiosities already boasted a solid selection of stars, not limited to The Walking Dead vet Andrew Lincoln making his TV return. Beyond delivering eyefuls of unsettling moments, the teaser also confirmed a selection of cast members that hadn’t been made official by Netflix prior to now, including Harry Potter star Rupert Grint, whose horror muscles have been flexed in recent years thanks to M. Night Shyamalan’s Servant series. Check those cast members out below, along with a shortlist of those who were already announced.
- Rupert Grint
- Eric André
- Kate Micucci
- Sofia Boutella
- Charlyne Yi
- Ismael Cruz Córdova
- Andrew Lincoln, Essie Davis, Luke Roberts, F. Murray Abraham, Glynn Turman, Tim Blake Nelson, Demetrius Grosse, Crispin Glover, Ben Barnes, Peter Weller, Sofia Boutella, David Hewlett
Weirdly enough, Guillermo Del Toro won’t be directing any of Cabinet of Curiosities’ eight episodes, though the series is based on a short story he wrote, and he curated the tales and talent that are bringing the frightfest to life. He did co-write one of the episodes with Sone of Anarchy and The Strain writer/producer Regina Corrado, but otherwise left the storytelling to the other all-stars listed below.
- Jennifer Kent (The Babadook)
- David Prior (The Empty Man)
- Guillermo Navarro (Hannibal eps, Pan’s Labyrinth cinematographer)
- Keith Thomas (2022’s Firestarter)
- Panos Cosmatos (Mandy)
- Catherine Hardwicke (Twilight)
- Ana Lily Amirpour (A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night)
- Vincenzo Natali (Cube)
With much to look forward to from Cabinet of Curiosities, it’s not yet clear when the anthology series will make its debut on Netflix, but we’ll be waiting for the date to be revealed via a Tarot card reading or an infestation of possessed bees or something. Check out our 2022 TV premiere schedule to see what new and returning shows are on the way in the meantime.
