We’ve learned quite a bit about Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro during the press tour for his film adaptation of Mary Shelley’s novel Frankenstein. Things like his ingenious use of miniatures in the movie, his desire to tackle The Phantom of the Operathat he’s in tune with his feminine side as a creator, and the fact that he doesn’t need an Oscar for the film because he’s already got Oscar Isaac. Key among his revelations is his joining creatives in offering a refreshing rebuke of AI in the arts—a stance he’s dug in on, saying he’d rather die than use it in his projects.
Speaking with NPR about a myriad of hot-button issues, like ICE raids in Los Angeles, del Toro expanded on his sentiment about AI, saying his concern is less with artificial intelligence than with “natural stupidity.” Along the way, he tied AI’s biggest proponents to the audacity of one Victor Frankenstein.
“I think that’s what drives most of the world’s worst features,” del Toro told NPR. “But did want it to have the arrogance Victor [Frankenstein] be similar in some ways with tech bros. He’s kind of blind, creating something without considering the consequences and I think we have to take pause and consider where we’re going.”
As del Toro alludes, the aftermath of folks using AI models has detrimental effects not only on users’ short-term memory—asking Grok or ChatGPT inquiries they could suss out themselves with a cursory Google search or by actually clicking on articles they stopped at the headline for—but also on the environment. Chief among them is boiling the Earth’s water to keep its systems cool, in service of shitting out folks’ silly, blatantly copyright-infringing-generated images for low-effort memes.
Alongside it being counter to the artistry of human beings creating art, del Toro saying, in no uncertain terms, “Fuck AI,” is a sentiment that resonates with tons of folks, be they avid fans of the arts or human creatives with their livelihoods at stake with its pervasive rise.
“Fuck AI”
— Guillermo del Toro
🎥 @VanityFair pic.twitter.com/6goCsK3OET
— Culture Crave 🍿 (@CultureCrave) October 18, 2025
Expanding on his sentiments about AI, del Toro clarified that his disdain is primarily directed at generative AI, a machine-learning model he’s not interested in and will never be.
“I’m 61, and I hope to be able to remain uninterested in using it at all until I croak,” he continued. “The other day, somebody wrote me an email, said, ‘What is your stance on AI?’ And my answer was very short. I said, ‘I’d rather die.’”
Del Toro’s take comes at a time when more and more films include in their credits that no generative AI was used in their orchestration. Inversely, its presence in films like Late Night With the Devilhas led to some folks scrunching their faces at the film cutting corners in its production when it could’ve done the bare minimum in hiring human artists for its retro showtime bumper illustrations.
Despite some filmmakers, like Mad Max director George Miller, embracing AI as an inevitability, and Blumhouse producer Jason Blum stating, “The consumer does not care if what they’re looking at is AI,” it’s humbling to see that del Toro remains a real one in championing the humanness, flaws and all, in what makes cinema special.
Frankenstein is currently in select theaters and will expand its listings over the coming weeks before premiering on Netflix on November 7.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
