This fall, director Guillermo del Toro is resurrecting Frankenstein’s monster, but not as audiences have ever seen him before.
Gone are the green skin, neck bolts, and flat-topped skull that have defined the creature for nearly a century. In their place is a creation portrayed by Jacob Elordi, whose monster boasts sculpted cheekbones and suture-less scars, presenting a figure that is more handsome than horrific. This new interpretation abandons the “unbearable physical deformity” described in Mary Shelley’s original novel, which was the cause of the creature’s rejection by humanity.
The monster’s skin is an alabaster white, with wounds that resemble flattering contour lines rather than gruesome stitches. According to visual effects makeup artist and creature designer Mike Hill, the team even considered adding false eyelashes but decided Elordi’s were naturally long enough. “I spent decades wondering how I would do this character in my own version,” Hill, a self-described “Frankenhead,” told CNN. “It kind of went out the window a little bit.”
This reimagining is a deliberate departure from the iconic look created by makeup artist Jack Pierce for Boris Karloff in the 1931 film. That visage, with its drooping eyelids and square head, became so influential that its power eventually diminished through parody, becoming, as Hill puts it, reduced to “cereal boxes and toys.” While recent filmmakers have tried to move away from Pierce’s version, Hill and Del Toro sought to go further. “We didn’t want this creature to be too garish, we didn’t want it to look like a road accident victim,” Hill explained.
To achieve this, Hill sculpted clay onto a 3D-printed body scan of Elordi, designing a geometric, color-coded pattern of muscular sections. The goal was to make the creature look intricately constructed and “man-made,” not like a “repair job.” The final makeup involved 42 individual silicone pieces applied over ten hours. Subtle nods to past versions remain, with some pieces tinged blue-green for Pierce’s creation and others yellow in homage to Shelley’s text. However, much of Elordi’s own features were preserved. “He has such a good bone structure, why hide it?” Hill said.
This aesthetic overhaul is more than cosmetic; it fundamentally alters the story’s central conflict. In Shelley’s novel, Victor Frankenstein is repulsed by his creation’s ugliness despite his initial goal of creating a beautiful being. In Del Toro’s film, he succeeds. “Frankenstein is trying to make a Porsche,” said Hill. “He’s not trying to make a station wagon.”
Consequently, the monster is rejected not for his appearance but for his perceived lack of intelligence. Frankenstein, played by Oscar Isaac, grows frustrated with the creature’s limited speech. The final blow comes from jealousy, when the film’s love interest, Elizabeth (Mia Goth), finds the creature attractive.
While some critics have questioned this significant deviation from the source material, academics see merit in the update. Dr. Jeanne Tiehen of University College Dublin suggests a sleeker creature may reflect modern anxieties about technology. Eleanor Johnson, a Columbia professor and author, believes the film pushes back against the Hollywood trope of the “ugly villain.” “What I like a lot about the casting of Jacob Elordi is that it leaves room for us to see the creature as a creature, and not just as a pure monster,” she said.
Hill has made peace with his modern creation and its place in the monster’s legacy. “Our creature couldn’t work in the James Whale movie in 1931 and Boris Karloff couldn’t work in our movie,” he said. “It’s OK to try and give someone a new version. And that, hopefully, becomes part of the Pantheon of history.”
“Frankenstein” is in select cinemas on October 17 and on Netflix on November 7.
