Guillermo del Toro Gómez is a Mexican novelist, director, producer, and screenwriter. He is most known for the fantasy films Pan’s Labyrinth and The Shape of Water, which both received Academy Awards for Best Director and Best Picture, respectively.
Guillermo Del Toro is the current king of monster movies, according to the majority of moviegoers. No other filmmaker has embraced the aesthetics and effects of classic monster movies as Del Toro has, and no other director has imposed his or her taste on the genre like he does.
His creations are one-of-a-kind, his attention to detail is impeccable, and his enthusiasm for all things gruesome is unfathomable. In addition to being linked to his eccentric preferences, his animals have been the subject of art exhibitions and events.
The phrase “so horrible they may be a modern-art masterpiece” has a literal meaning when it comes to this guy’s monstrous collection. There’s no shortage of the horrific and odd when it comes to this person. You can’t dispute that they all have their own distinct beauty, whether they’re terrifying, wicked, or somewhat macabre.
In this video, we present 18 of Del Toro’s most well-known creatures from a wide range of films.
Trespasser (Kaiju) – Pacific Rim (2013)
Guillermo del Toro’s love letter to the kaiju genre, Pacific Rim, resulting in a slew of enormous creatures that challenge the king of kaijus, Godzilla. The biggest and baddest out of all of them was the Trespasser which features a gigantic axe-like head and an almost impenetrable hide and was thus dubbed Axehead.
Trespasser’s introduction is most likely a reference to “The Wrath of Moonthunder!!,” a Spectreman episode. Guillermo del Toro grew up watching numerous Tokusatsu series, including Spectreman.
After emerging from the Breach, it was the first Kaiju to attack mankind. It attacked San Francisco on August 10, 2013, and devastated three cities in a 35-mile-long trail of destruction over the next six days. Trespasser entered the city with a 7.1 earthquake, which was quickly followed by it rising from the water near the Golden Gate Bridge.
It destroyed the bridge and everything on it before cutting a massive trail of destruction across San Francisco, Sacramento, Oakland, and other nearby cities. The US military’s conventional weapons, aided by the Royal Air Force, failed to pierce the creature’s cover.
After a lot of human effort, it was finallynuked by the US military and the Royal Air Force of the United Kingdom.The Pan Pacific Defence Corps was unable to ascertain its category class from its destroyed body since Trespasser’s attack occurred before the creation of the Serizawa Scale.
Judas Breed – Mimic (1997)
One of the scariest items on our list comes from one of del Toro’s early movies. Mimic is based on a short tale by Donald A. Wollheim about a species of gigantic cockroach-like insects in Manhattan that have evolved to “mimic” the look of people. While this film wasn’t the most well received, it’s monsters among us atmosphere is powerful, and it drives the majority of its goosebumpselement.
They were created as part of a successful campaign in New York to exterminate disease-carrying cockroaches that were causing children to contract Stricklers Disease. They were six-legged animals with formidable pincers capable of ripping a human apart for consumption. Wings allowed them to travel around their domain, making them more threatening out in the open.
They could wrap their wings over their bodies and reveal their ‘human’ disguise, which consisted of huge coats worn by humans. The colony had just one male who would reproduce the species, so the bulk of the species were female. Males were also paler than females and lacked wings.
The animals could detect blood traces, which would throw them into a feeding frenzy; but, they were unable to distinguish prey that had been coated with their’smell,’ mistaking such food for their own kind. Consider it a colossal, bizarre-faced cockroach roaming the streets of New York.
If that isn’t enough to make you itch, consider the terrible disease they carry. Their ability to imitate humans, combining human and insect features, was far more terrifying than their native appearance. Del Toro’s ability to dig into people’s fears and dreams is evident in this early work.
The Pale Man – Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
The Pale Man is a terrifying Goya painting brought to life, and is certainly one of the most terrifying monsters on our list in terms of idea. “Saturn Devouring His Son” is the picture that served as inspiration.
Tenome, the ghost of a blind man whose eyes are positioned in the palms of his hands, was a real-life Japanese legendary creature who also influenced the creation of The Pale Man. One of Pan’s Labyrinth’s two iconic creatures, this child-eating nightmare is nothing short of horrible. We were definitely checking under the bed for him when we arrived home, what with his hideous teeth, eyes in his hands, and horrific shriek.
His physique resembles that of a frail elderly guy. The mouth and nostrils, which are identical to those of a manta ray, are visible. He eats children and fairies, and his eyes may be placed in the sockets in his hands rather than in his face. The Pale Man’s table is piled high with food and drink, but children are not allowed to eat because the creature will wake up and attack if they do.
Despite being a slow runner, the beast is nevertheless a dangerous monster intent on devouring a child who enter his cave.The Pale Man is famine made flesh, and is a darker counterpart of Slenderman. He’s always on the lookout for new victims who trespass in his hall. As he pursues Ofelia, his moment with her sends our hearts racing, and it causes us palpitations every time. He’s a monster worthy of the term, terrifying and suspenseful.
Reapers – Blade 2 (2002)
If you believe vampires have to be attractive and mysterious, have a look at these scenes from Blade 2. Like the vamps in del Toro’s Strain series, these guys eat more than just bloodsuckers. The reapers are not your normal vampires by any means, as they are biologically intended to be the better beast. A breed of genetically modified vampires is known as the Reaper.
They differ from regular vampires in a number of ways, the most notable of which is that they feed on the blood of both vampires and humans. Reapers will drink human blood if it is required, but vampire blood has an addictive feel to them, and they will always choose it over human blood.
The Reapers and the Reaper virus are impervious to garlic and silver, as well as being significantly hungrier than the normal Nosferatu. Because they are significantly stronger and can survive a torrent of strikes, they make for a hard battle against the undead. The mandible-like mouths with deadly fangs and a strange tongue are their most distinguishing characteristic and their fangs contain a neurotoxin which paralyses their prey.
They are pack animals and with how terrifying they look when their jaws fully open up, you would definitely run if you saw them. The Reapers, who feed on both vampires and humans, are a difficult task for our favourite Daywalker and a design masterpiece by Del Toro.
Angel Of Death – Hellboy 2 (2008)
With wings, a dusty heart, and a hoarse voice, it surely seems like a genuine, live angel of death to us. This is without a doubt the most incredible embodiment of death we’ve ever witnessed, and it takes place in Hellboy 2: The Golden Army. In terms of design, presence, and performance, there’s a lot going on and it’s difficult to pick just one quality.
The Angel’s greatest distinguishing trait is that its eyes are located on its wings rather than on its skeleton face. The Angel of Death has been waiting for a dying Hellboy among the ruins of Bethmora for a long time. Liz Sherman was seeking a way to remove the part of Prince Nuada’sspear from Hellboy’s chest while the BPRD was looking for the Golden Army.
While the Angel appears unconcerned with Hellboy’s plight, it only saves his life once Liz chooses Hellboy to live despite being informed that she will be the one who suffers the most when Hellboy fulfils his destiny. The Angel departs after removing the spear fragment and handing it over to the goblin blacksmith.
Aside from Doug Jones’s portrayal, the creature’s benign but frightening character is what keeps us on board. His tone isn’t the ominous and dominating one associated with death. We can’t say it’s evil, but it’s creepy. The universe’s only truly neutral party, both lovely and terrifying at the same time and it is brought to life by Guillermo Del Toro’s genius.
The Jangly Man – Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019)
The Jangly Man is the principal antagonist in the short story ‘What Do You Come For?’ from the book Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, and the secondary antagonist in the 2019 film version.
Troy James portrays him, and Andrew Jackson provides the voice for this character. Except for his feet, which were shown peeking out from the fireplace in 1981, not much of him was shown. He’s shown as a twisted creature with a chopped skull and detached body parts in 2019.
The Jangly Man’s backstory is as follows: A lonely elderly woman living alone hoped for a friend, but as we all know, we should be cautious about what we ask for. One by one, long dangly body parts come out of the chimney to finally present a long and dangly, Jangly Man in front of her. He started to dance around the room which scared the old women and when she asked him why had he come, he said that he came for her.
The Jangly Man appears in the movie with his head descending down the chimney. The Jangly Man joins forces and morphs into a humanoid, murdering an officer by snapping his neck. The Jangly Man then pursues Ramon, attempting to kill him. The Jangly Man, on the other hand, fails in his attempt to kill Ramon and is instead slain by Sarah as she sees her mistakes. He is truly a sight to behold and not in the best way.
Mr. Wink – Hellboy (2004)
Mr. Wink is a giant cave troll that appears in Hellboy II: The Golden Army as a secondary adversary. He was Prince Nuada’s personal friend and strongman. He is a troll with an iron fist for a right arm that he can detach and hurl at opponents. It joins back to his arm by creeping back to its owner.
He wears a metal armour plate that is impenetrable to even Hellboy’sfists. Mr Wink is a physical force to be reckoned with, capable of flinging human-sized opponents several dozen feet. William in Underworld: Evolution was played by Brian Steele, who also played Sammael in the 2004 Hellboy film.
Mr. Wink initially appears beneath the Manhattan Bridge, where Prince Nuada is seen using his spear to practise martial arts. Soon after, they carry out a conspiracy to rob an auction house of one of the three pieces of the Crown of Bethmora, which, when reassembled, will bring an army of clockwork soldiers known as the Golden Army under the authority of the wearer, assuming he is of royal descent.
However, Mr Wink is killed in a battle against Hellboy which incurs Prince Nauda’s wrath who then sends another creature to attack Hellboy but Hellboy triumphs once more. While Mr Wink doesn’t say much, you definitely feel his presence because of the strong creative work that has gone into his character development.
The Master – The Strain (2014)
The Master is a Strigoi (pronounced -Stri-Goi) who appears in both the book series and the television version of The Strain as the main adversary. He is the youngest of the seven original ancients and he’s also the brains behind the strain virus that swept through New York.
By the time he arrived in New York, he was living inside the body of JusefSardu, a 19th-century Polish aristocrat suffering from gigantism, which explains his terrifying stature and height. Apart from his height, he has the same characteristics as lesser Strigoi.
From the six-foot-long device used to transmit the disease to the lack of a nose, sharp clawed fingers, and shallow, entirely hairless skin, everything about the disease is bizarre. Along with the strigoi, The Master has vampire-like abilities, such as superhuman strength, a strong aversion to the sun, and the ability to drink human blood.
The creature isn’t your typical bloodsucking monster, and it’s actually rather frightening to look at. The design of the face makes it look almost like the skull is protruding through the skin and the sharp, pointy ears add to the fantastical element. The shape of the head is also almost non-human.
What makes this creature scary is how human it looks while also looking like a Strigoi at the same time. The creature is humanoid in appearance and definitely one to watch out for because his end goal is to take over the world and rule it with his Strigoi army.
Knifehead (Kaiju) – Pacific Rim (2013)
From the film Pacific Rim, Knifehead is a Category III Kaiju. Knifehead is a colossal Kaiju with plenty of muscle. Its most distinctive feature is a large, wide, sharp-ended snout that could readily breach the armour of a Jaeger. When it resurfaces from the water, it has a blowhole in the centre of its head that forcefully expels air.
Its back is covered in huge, shell-like armour, while the rest of its body resembles that of a goblin shark. Knifehead has two big, dominating arms projecting from its midsection and two smaller, secondary arms. It has three-clawed digits on each of its huge arms, with the middle digit being substantially larger.
It has a tail as well.The rest of its body is dark grey, with bright yellow stripes running across it. However, its eyes and the inside of its mouth glow blue.Knifehead’s primary forearm bones are separated by a fleshless gap, giving the appearance of two merged arms with three-digited claws. Knifehead is also the world’s largest Category III Kaiju.
Another gigantic Kaiju with an incredible design from the Kaiju-filled film Pacific Rim. Knifehead also emerges from the breach like Trespasser and goes on to cause absolute chaos until it is finally taken down in a spectacular battle by Gipsy Danger. Knifehead’s battle with Gipsy Danger is a watershed moment in the Kaiju War.
The Kaiju had always been unthinking brutes, easily beaten by the Rangers’ wits, armament, and tactics in past engagements. Knifehead is the first Kaiju to show signs of intelligence and planned deception.
Pale Lady – Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark (2019)
Pale Lady, also known as The Pale Lady or The Woman, is a character in the short horror novel The Dream by Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark. The Pale Lady is presented as a fat woman with long black hair and black eyes, and her complexion is pale in hue, as her name suggests.
She has a two-dimensional, horrible visage that is enough to make a grown man uncomfortable and seems more like a horror painting than she resembles anything living. This is a ghost or spirit or entity of some sort. The Pale Lady is featured as a minor enemy in the 2019 film, despite being a hero in the book series.
Pale Lady arrives in the protagonist’s dream, that of an artist named Lucy, as she is dreaming of a chamber and warns her to leave because there is evil there. Upon waking, she doesn’t think much of it but as she goes out house hunting, she chances upon a lodging that was exactly the same as the one she had seen in her dream and in place of the chubby, motherly landlady who had just brought her to the room, she came face to face with the Pale Lady.
In that moment, she was terrified and she fled, never to return. The Pale Lady could very well have been helping her avoid getting entangled with a great evil or she was the evil entity herself, that remains open to interpretation.
Faun – Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
One of Del Toro’s most well-known creatures is Pan from Pan’s Labyrinth. Doug Jones wore the beast’s horns as well as the stilts to heighten his stature for the role. The faun’s face is lovely, but yet scary and decaying. His body shows that he has been sleeping for millennia, waiting for the proper princess to appear. In his design, he is both terrifying and alluring. Woodcuts and tattoos are both influenced by the etching on his body.
Pan is both alive and inextricably linked to the Earth. Although he is a lovely nature spirit, he has an occult and ancient quality to him, as do many del Toro creatures, as well as a peculiar uncertainty concerning his genuine goals.His horns and sections of his body resemble gnarled branches, and his organic characteristics are more goat than humanoid, but everything blends together so beautifully.
He’s a fairy tale monster mixing it up with humans, yet he seems at peace in both realms. However, I can say with full confidence that it is Faun’s eyes that will make you the most uncomfortable. His eyes are milky white and unnerving to look at as it almost blends in with the rest of his appearance.
When he first meets Ofelia, he looks to be an elderly faun, but as the film proceeds, he matures backwards, eventually resembling his younger self near the end. This is definitely one of Guillermo Del Toro’s best and most beautiful character designs.
Karl Ruprecht Kroenen – Hellboy (2004)
The four adjectives that best describe this beast are Nazi-zombie-steampunk-cyborg. In terms of design and delivery, Karl RuprechtKronen, the infamous assassin, has a lot going on. This guy is like something Clive Barker would dream up, and we really love it. He is easily one of the greatest and most cosplayed villains in Hellboy.
Kronen is a scientist turned assassin who uses a combination of black magic and wicked technologies to bring him to life. You’ve got yourself a very terrifying adversary when you combine his cryptic and striking design with his skill for swordplay. We’ve got to award Kronen a spot on our list because his delivery is easily more spectacular than Rasputin’s.
In the comics, Kroenen was a pretty regular Nazi SS chemist, save for the fact that he always wore a gas mask and protective bodysuit, owing to severe obsessive-compulsive disorder and a fear of microbes.
For the 2004 film adaption, director Guillermo del Toro devised a dramatically enlarged biography of the character. Karl serves as the film’s secondary antagonist. LadislavBeran portrays him in the film.Kroenendoes not feel pain, most likely as a result of Rasputin’s black magic and his own significant modifications.
He also appeared to have no basic demands, being able to go without food, water, air, or sleep, and even “turning off” his body. Kroenen also has a clockwork heart and a mechanical left hand, which he regularly spins up before fight. He is proven to have a lethal aim, as well as being a great swordsman and possessing amazing physical attributes.
Homunculus – Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark (2010)
The Homunculi are a demonic race of small netherworld demons. These monsters are thin and terrifying in appearance, and they even live in the house that Emerson Blackwood used to possess. They can only talk in whispers, are scared of bright lights, and have a strong desire for human teeth which seems to a theme with Del Toro.
They’re based on the nameless monsters from the 1973 television movie and also have fur on their backs with their bodies being mainly dark brown and black. They also have the ability to turn humans into one of them.
They play the major antagonists in the short film, duping mankind and dragging them into the Netherworld. Lord Emerson Blackwood’s son was kidnapped by the Homunculi over 200 years ago in Providence County, Rhode Island of the 19th century, and he pleaded for his return by murdering a maid in an attempt to offer her in exchange, only to be dragged into their lair.
This same pattern started up again when a new family moved into the house, long after the first incident. The Hurst family was also plagued by whispers which led to Kim, Hurst’s girlfriend being kidnapped and taken away by the homunculi although they had actually targeted Hurst’s daughter, little Sally. These creatures definitely make you wonder what exactly happens in your house once you switch off the lights and go to bed for the night.
Leatherback (Kaiju) – Pacific Rim (2013)
In our list of Del Toro’s creations, Leatherback is the third Kaiju. The leatherback is very amazing to see. The leatherback is a naturally aggressive creature that looks like a gorilla. The term “Leatherback” is a pun on the silverback, the moniker given to adult male gorillas. In the way it moves on its knuckles and charges at its adversaries, the Leatherback’s body
language is comparable to that of a Gorilla. When hurt, it adopts hit-and-run tactics to destroy adversaries. It will flee the battle and hide until the enemy’s attention is drawn away from it. Leatherback attacks from behind, using its opponent’s weight to its advantage. The strong protrusions that cover Leatherback’s fists are like maces, capable of tearing through armour.
Its thick skin allows it to resist significant injury without breaking down. Bony armour on the shoulders, as well as a crest-like plate that covers the top of its skull, add to this.On the back of its head, it has fourteen bioluminescent tendrils that quiver as a sign of irritation.
It gets its power from its rage, which shows itself most dramatically when it’s assaulted. It walks on the knuckles of its gigantic, shovel-like hands or leaps great distances like a gorilla. Leatherbacks have six eyes that are visible. The Kaiju’s most lethal feature is a massive, four-lobed organ on its back that can charge and generate an electromagnetic pulse that destroys all electronics in a large region, posing a serious threat to digitised Jaegers.
In Pacific Rim, Leatherback is the only Kaiju who uses makeshift weaponry. Leatherback shares several characteristics with Sammael, a demon from del Toro’s Hellboy.
Behemoth From Hellboy (2004)
The Behemoth is the major antagonist in the 2004 film Hellboy, which is based on the comic book series of the same name. Behemoth is one of 369 Ogdru-Jahad (pronounced: -Og-DruJa-Haad) spawns developed just for the film series, making it the lone Ogdru Hem in the film. It had a gourd-shaped, worm-like body with an indeterminate number of tentacles on each point, with the lower tentacles being much larger than those on the head.
Behemoth’s underbelly was likewise covered in a slew of black eyeballs. However, the higher point’s tentacled “head” conceals a retractable head with two pairs of eyes and a lengthy tentacle-like tongue. Sadu-Hem from the comics was most likely the inspiration for the Behemoth.
The Behemoth came in to deal with Hellboy, Agent John Meyers, and the comatose Elizabeth Sherman in the film’s end, when Rasputin confessed that he possessed the Behemoth within his body the entire time. It arises from Rasputin’s knife wound and expands to enormous proportions, crushing Rasputin and Ilsa Von Haupstein as punishment for their failure to manipulate Hellboy to free its parents, the OgdruJahad.
Hellboy initially has trouble grappling with Behemoth, but eventually defeats it by forcing himself to be devoured and detonating a belt of grenades, causing it to explode from the inside. It was truly a force to be reckoned with and as far as tentacled monsters go, this is one of the best that we have come across in the entire horror genre.
Otachi (Kaiju) – Pacific Rim (2013)
The Otachi, a category IV Kaiju, is the final kaiju on this list. Otachi, like Leatherback, is one of the world’s largest and heaviest Category IV Kaiju. She is longer than other Kaiju varieties in terms of length, but not in terms of bulk. Instead of standing erect like some other Kaiju, Otachiappears to walk on all fours.
Her body is made up of two short legs and four-digit hand-wings that she uses to fly. For protection, she keeps her wings inside her forearms. Even when her legs are hauling something as heavy as a Jaeger, Otachi can fly to the edge of space. She possesses a long tail with bony plates running down her spine and three prehensile pincers at the end, which can be used as a weapon against the jaegers.
A long, plated, and ridged neck, as well as a large, muscular jaw and a characteristic crest between her forehead and nose, define Otachi’s visage. Her true eyes are hidden beneath the side of the head crest. The front of the crest is curled, with a strong, powerful spike extending from the back for eye protection.
To spit out of the pouch, the bottom jaw can break in half. Her tongue features a blooming, bioluminescent structure that she seems to employ as a gripping mechanism or a detecting organ.
She also possesses a pouch under her neck that can be engorged and vomit out a corrosive blue acid which is more than capable of destroying the Jaegers. Otachi is cunning, and her pain tolerance appears to be higher than that of other Kaiju. Otachi, for example, continued to fly into the atmosphere even after losing her tail.
Tooth Fairy – Hellboy (2004)
These dreadful little monsters are from Hellboy II: The Golden Army, and they’re yet another take on the terrifying tooth fairy. Take a page from the Imps’ playbook from Don’t Be Afraid of the Dark and combine their attributes with the insect-like qualities of the ones in Pan’s Labyrinth, and you’ve got these fellas.
These pests are more than your typical pest, with their organic wing shape, spidery legs, and calcium-hunger. These creepy, slightly cute terrors are true man-eaters that, according to Abe Sapien, will leave nothing but their droppings behind. We had to include them on the list since there’s something about their design that screams del Toro.
Tooth fairies aren’t especially harmful on their own, but they move in swarms, which makes them far more hazardous. Depending on the size of the swarm, they may easily overcome most creatures.
The tooth fairies are native to the Black Forest and feed mostly on calcium found in flesh, bones, organs, and other tissues, with a preference for teeth due to higher calcium concentration.When attacking living prey, they begin by eating the victim’s teeth, but soon consume the entire body until all that is left is the fairies’ own faeces.
Despite their violent nature, they are intelligent and capable of communicating intelligently with one another in their own language.Their colossal teeth live true to their moniker, exposing themselves to be a threat despite their unassuming appearance and little stature. Even with such a short amount of screen time, the tooth fairies were able to make their presence felt and credit must be given to the creature design.
Forest Elemental from Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)
The Last Elemental is a Forest God and an Earth elemental entity regarded as the Giver of Life and the Destroyer. Before Hellboy shot it to death, it was meant to be the last of its kind. To date, the creature has only made two appearances- in the film Hellboy 2: The Golden Army and its novelization.
Before the events of the film, little is known about the creature. It is hinted that there were once many more such animals but they all died out as a result of humanity’s expansion on Earth or during the human-magical creature war.
The creature adopted one of two forms, depending on its ‘age.’ It was a green seed, or bean, in its ‘baby’ form, as Hellboy characterised it. The ‘adult’ form was a 15-metre-tall humanoid with tentacle-like limbs, a vine-covered leaf-torso, and a flower-like head. The latter was made up of a number of leaves that covered a blazing energy gangleon that served as both the creature’s brain and a bud that only flowered into a flower after it died. The organism had previously shown evidence of intelligence in its seed form, interpreting speech and even moving on its own.
It also has the potential to germinate and grow quickly.The creature exhibited great physical strength in its ‘adult’ form, and was capable of latching onto surfaces – but it’s unclear whether this ability was a side consequence of injury, or if the Elemental always had it but couldn’t manage it.
The creature’s ‘blood’ was extremely effective at growing simple plantlife like grass and small flowers, while its fully blossomed energy gangleon – its ‘head’ after death – could create floating plant-seeds. It could also speak for itself as a seed,’speaking’ gibberish, and as an adult, growling and growing.
Throughout his varied filmmaking career, Del Toro has created some of the most horrifying and imaginative monster designs in film history. Del Toro is known for his ability to create one-of-a-kind cinematic monsters.
He creates an art form out of the way he designs and forms these otherwise terrifying and often unsettling entities. A terrifying monster can be created by any filmmaker of any levelof talent, but only del Toro can create a beautifully horrifying creature.