“Jacob Elordi needed this experience more than I did”: Marvel star had to turn down “Frankenstein” role – and is still happy for his replacement – Kino News

It was one of the most anticipated films of the year: Guillermo del Toro’s epic “Frankenstein” variant has finally opened in selected German cinemas before being added to Netflix’s program on November 7th.

But if you have the chance to see the film on the big screen, you should take it. Finally, FILMSTARTS editor-in-chief Christoph Petersen writes in his review, which awarded 4 out of 5 possible stars: “‘Frankenstein’ is the film that Guillermo del Toro was born to make – even without any major innovations, it is an overwhelmingly monumental and deeply personal adaptation of the horror classic.”

In fact, the Oscar winner (“The Shape of Water”) has fulfilled a lifelong dream with his film adaptation of Mary Shelley’s famous novel – even before he began his active filmmaking career, del Toro fantasized about bringing his own “Frankenstein” to the cinema. In 2007 he set out to make his dream come true for the first time…

… but it wasn’t until almost two decades later that the project actually took shape – thanks to the help of streaming giant Netflix. Del Toro now had a budget of 120 million US dollars at his disposal, which he not only invested in elaborate effects and an equally opulent set, but also used it to bring together a well-known ensemble: Oscar Isaac (“Dune”), Christoph Waltz (“Inglourious Basterds”), Mia Goth (“Pearl”) and Felix were cast Kammerer (“Nothing new in the West”).

While the originally announced cast largely matched the final casting list, there was still a drastic change: Not Jacob Elordi (“Priscilla”) was actually supposed to embody the tragic monster – but “The Amazing Spider-Man” and “After The Hunt” star Andrew Garfield!

That’s why Andrew Garfield had to cancel the monster role “Frankenstein”.

However, scheduling conflicts during the Hollywood strike initiated by the filmmakers’ union SAG-AFTRA in January 2024 ultimately put a stop to the plans – and Garfield was replaced by shooting star Jacob Elordi. Remarkable: After del Toro took a full nine months to develop the monster design for Garfield, he now had just nine weeks to adapt the look of the artificial creature to Elordi’s physique.

It definitely worked: The 28-year-old “Euphoria” star not only manages to capture the innocence and tragedy of the (supposed) monster, but also gives him a certain sexiness. Although we would also have been curious to see Garfield’s interpretation: Elordi was definitely a good choice…

“I’m very happy that Jacob Elordi took on the role”

… which, by the way, Garfield also sees it the same way! In an interview with Deadline The 42-year-old actor said: “I was just in Marrakesh with Jacob Elordi, who ended up playing the character of the monster, and I heard how incredible and fulfilling it was for him. That’s why I’m very, very happy that he took on the role.” (via ScreenRant)

The “We Live In Time” actor continues: “Of course I’m disappointed that I couldn’t play it myself because I love Guillermo and also Oscar and everyone else he’s assembled. But meeting Jacob felt really fateful, so I thought, ‘No, maybe he needed this experience more than I did.’ It was great to feel that he really had a spectacular time on the job.”

By the way: Charlie Hunnam (“Monster – The Story of Ed Gein”) has already worked with Guillermo del Toro twice – but in one case he later bitterly regretted that he didn’t star in an absolute mega-hit instead. You can read the whole story in the following article:

“We cried on the phone for 20 minutes”: “Monster” star Charlie Hunnam calls the cancellation of a mega-hit “the worst professional experience of my life”