King of the fantastical and the uncanny, Guillermo del Toro is not easily scared. A haunted hotel room in a remote Scottish location where he’s filming his upcoming Frankenstein film, however, has him bolting away.
The adventure began on Tuesday, Aug. 20, when the Oscar-winning director shared with his X followers that he would be staying at the “most haunted room” of an 1800s Aberdeen hotel from which one of his producers had moved due to freaky happenings. The spooked woman had spoken of “odd electrical and physical occurences,” successfully piquing del Toro’s curiosity, the supernatural enthusiast he is.
The Mexican filmmaker promised to report back on any findings and confessed to having “high hopes” for these ghost-infested Scottish lodgings, especially after being disappointed by other so-called “haunted rooms.”
Fast forward a couple of days and del Toro’s supernatural expedition into these mysterious quarters has become nearly as bewitching as the best of his films. As if straight out of a scene from Crimson Peak and its ghost-whisperer protagonist, or Pan’s Labyrinth and its hidden monsters, or indeed haunted by the spirit of Frankenstein’s monster and its creator Mary Shelley, the director confirmed his producer’s experiences with a chilling update.
“Something is in that room with me,” the 59-year-old ominously revealed, detailing an “oppressive” atmosphere that was keeping him up at night. Needing six hours of sleep to “have a good shooting day,” del Toro decided to spend his nights elsewhere, not wanting to jeopardize his upcoming film for cheap thrills. He is, however, still visiting the room twice a day and we’re now on the edge of our seats for his next report. If there’s anyone who can tell a good ghost story, it’s the horror maestro.
Although we’re unsure which cast members are joining del Toro in gloomy Scotland, local newspaper The Press and Journal has revealed that the film is shooting in the imposing Dunecht House, an aristocratic mansion dating back to 1820.
In case a star-studded cast composed of Oscar Isaac, Jacob Elordi, and Mia Goth, and a decade-long passion for Frankenstein’s tale hadn’t yet achieved it, the ordeal might just inspire the filmmaker to make one of his best, most unsettling films yet. Could Frankenstein, released by Netflix and expected in 2025, join Pan’s Labyrinth, The Shape of Water, and Pinocchio in Guillermo del Toro’s Oscar cabinet? Not if the Aberdeen ghosts can help it.