Guillermo del Toro Says He’d Prefer Death Over AI Art Going Mainstream
When Guillermo del Toro said in a recent interview that he’d rather be dead than watch AI-generated imagery become the norm, the comment hit the headlines and sparked a lot of chatter. It isn’t just a dramatic soundbite; it taps into a worry that’s been bubbling for decades, what happens when machines start to do the work artists have refined over generations? He’s warned, perhaps a bit dramatically, that a flood of synthetic visuals could erode the skills passed down from master to apprentice.
To make his point, del Toro reaches back to the Romantic era, likening today’s tech rush to the same fear of unchecked progress that haunted writers like Mary Shelley. By naming the household that shaped Shelley’s imagination, he lines up his alarm with the old myths warning against scientific hubris, suggesting that the ghosts of a nineteenth-century novel and an eighteenth-century epic might be whispering the same thing: humanity’s uneasy climb toward god-like power.
*The Goodwin-Shelley household of Mary's youth was really pro-scientific…*
The Goodwin-Shelley household of Mary's youth was really pro-scientific. I think that Frankenstein is actually closer to Paradise Lost. It's man rising up to God and saying, "Why am I here when I didn't ask to be born?" Which is a very romantic--and by romantic, I mean the Romantic movement--question.
Victor is someone who believes very much in science, but he's also tragic. He almost doesn't ever confront what he's done. In fact, there is a big harangue Victor does in the book toward the sailors saying, You should follow your captain all the way.
Now, in my opinion, the arrogance of Victor is very common now: the tyrant that believes himself to be a victim. But that is true, or has been true since the beginning of time. Absolutely everyone from political figures to Silicon Valley tech bros.
The fact that we enthroned tyranny as a form of certainty, as if it was an attribute. I think the people I most admire are people that are riddled with doubts. When I think about playing God, I also think of AI.
Which is also perhaps something that never asked to be born. Do you see parallels between the makers of AI and, say, Victor? I was not interested in making any [in this film].
I understand [using] it in engineering and biochemistry and mathematics, because those are permutations. In art, I don't think anyone asked for it. Nobody raised their hand and said, "Could you invent this?" No one asked for Sora.
Look, the real threshold has not been crossed. It's not people making this, it's people consuming it--at a cost. I will gladly pay $4.99 for a song by the Beatles or Dylan, you name it, but who is going to pay $4.99 for something created with AI?
I keep wondering if AI-generated pictures could ever reach the level of care that del Toro demands. He’s pretty blunt - “death” over a future where that kind of art becomes normal. His whole track record leans on slow-burn planning, page-long scripts and hand-drawn storyboards, which feels worlds away from the instant output of today’s generators.
Then there’s his Frankenstein remake, a movie he’s been hunting for years; the teasers show massive sets and costumes that only someone “as connected as he is” could pull together. He’s said the film feels more like *Paradise Lost* than a straight-up horror, turning the creator-vs-creation clash into a Romantic-era debate. Still, it’s hard to say whether AI will ever match that depth of detail.
The comment seems more a personal line in the sand than a verdict for the whole industry. As the conversation spins on, del Toro’s position highlights a growing tug-of-war between hand-crafted vision and machine-driven workflows, and we’ll have to see if they ever find common ground.
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Common Questions Answered
What did Guillermo del Toro say he would prefer over AI‑generated imagery becoming mainstream?
He stated he would rather be dead than see AI‑generated imagery become the norm, emphasizing his strong opposition to synthetic visuals overtaking traditional artistic methods.
How does del Toro connect the debate over AI art to the Romantic movement and Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein?
He likens the rise of AI‑generated visuals to the Romantic era’s fear of unchecked scientific progress, referencing Frankenstein as a modern “Paradise Lost” where man challenges divine creation, echoing the anxieties he sees in today’s AI tools.
What concerns does del Toro express about the impact of AI‑generated imagery on traditional craftsmanship?
He warns that the flood of synthetic visuals threatens the craft honed by generations of artists, arguing that AI’s rapid, algorithmic output undermines the painstaking planning, scripting, and storyboard work that define his own filmmaking process.
What does del Toro’s upcoming Frankenstein adaptation illustrate about his stance on AI versus handcrafted art?
The adaptation, which features elaborate sets and costumes that could only arise from detailed, hands‑on design, serves as a concrete example of the meticulous craft he values, contrasting sharply with the quick, automated results of current AI tools.