A few years ago, Guillermo del Toro came very close to directing The Hobbit. Scheduling issues put an end to that, however, and the biggest movie he’s directed to date is Pacific Rim, a big budget blockbuster which didn’t make a huge dent at the box office (hence why the chances of a sequel are currently looking slim after coming close to happening).
Despite that movie’s failings, del Toro has done a lot of great work, contributing some solid releases to the superhero genre with the likes of Blade II and Hellboy. Unsurprisingly, he’s since been offered any number of comic book adaptations, one of which was Justice League Dark, a release that the filmmaker shockingly decided to walk away from earlier this year. However, it sounds as if that’s just one of many that he’s been approached to take the helm of over the years:
“I can’t say which ones, but I’ve been offered gigantic movies in the superhero genre, but I don’t like the superheroes that are… nice. I like the dark ones, so Blade and Hellboy were right for me. The mechanics of action only interest me when it’s a universe very, very close to my heart, which Pacific Rim is, and I love it. I’m not going to pursue action movies or superhero movies at all any more. I hope I can go back to doing the smaller, weirder ones.”
It’s easy to understand why the Crimson Peak director may have soured on the studio system given how Pacific Rim 2 has been pulled away from him, and it could be argued that he’s always at his best with smaller movies. Of course, with Crimson Peak so far receiving mixed reviews, it’s hard to say where the filmmaker will next turn his attention, but fans of his are no doubt going to want to keep an eye on whatever it may be.
Still, it’s hard not to be disappointed that he has no plans to take a crack at the superhero genre, especially now it’s at its most popular. Hopefully Marvel or DC can change his mind at some point over the next few years.
