A master of horror gives a first look at some of the twisted nightmares and violent delights from his new anthology series, Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities.
Halloween might be the furthest thing on people’s minds in the dog days of August, but a new first look teaser for Netflix’s new anthology series, Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities—plus the release of several simultaneously gorgeous and horrific images—are putting us in a much more frisson-seeking frame of mind. Nobody does horror quite like del Toro and this anthology very much looks worthy of his reputation.
The series was first announced in 2018 and features eight episodes written and directed by filmmakers handpicked by del Toro. “In this anthology we gave ownership of each episode to the directors,” he says in the first look teaser. “Each of the episodes has a whole world. They present you with different delights. Some are savory, some are sweet. You get a surprise from each of the bites.”
The list of directors includes Jennifer Kent, who directed 2014’s phenomenal The Babadook; her episode, “The Murmuring,” is based on an original story by del Toro and features Babadook star, Essie Davis (aka Miss Fisher). “Dreams in the Witch House,” based on an H.P. Lovecraft short story, is directed by Catherine Hardwicke (Lords of Dogtown, Twilight).
“Graveyard Rats” is directed by Vincenzo Natali (In the Tall Grass, Splice), while Guillermo Navarro (Narcos) directed “Lot 36,” also based on an original story by del Toro. Keith Thomas (Firestarter) directed “Pickman’s Model,” another episode based on a Lovecraft short story; David Prior (The Empty Man) directed “The Autopsy”; Panos Cosmatos (Mandy) directed “The Viewing”; and Ana Lily Amirpour—who directed the exquisite A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night—directed “The Outside.”
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That’s quite a range of voices and artistic styles, augmented by a star-studded cast that includes Rupert Grint, Ben Barnes, Crispin Glover, Peter Weller, Kate Micucci, Nia Vardalos, David Hewlett, Demetrius Grosse, Sebastian Roche, F. Murray Abraham, Hannah Galway, Steve Agee, and Michael Therrialt, among others.
The fact that the series also incorporates the kind of stunningly atmospheric visual effects del Toro is known for is the cherry on top. “We wanted to create beautiful practical creatures with all the artistry that goes into creating a great monster,” del Toro says in the teaser. “We achieved some of the most remarkable images in the series. With Cabinet of Curiosities, what I’m trying to say is ‘Look, The world is beautiful and horrible at exactly the same time.”
Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities will be released on Netflix across a four-day event. Two episodes will drop on October 25, 2022, with two more epodes released each day through October 28, 2022.
Listing image by Netflix
