Guillermo del Toro Denounces AI at Awards Show

Guillermo del Toro, a three-time Oscar winner, expressed strong sentiments regarding the role of humans in filmmaking during a recent awards ceremony.

Del Toro, known for directing films like *Pacific Rim*, *Pan’s Labyrinth*, and *The Hobbit*, was honored with a tribute award at the 2025 Gotham Film Awards.

He accepted the award alongside actors Oscar Isaac and Jacob Elordi for their performances in the upcoming film *Frankenstein*.

Isaac began his acceptance speech focused on themes of diversity and immigration, but before he could dive deeper, del Toro interrupted with heartfelt reflections on his own introduction to Mary Shelley’s work at the age of 11.

“I’m proud to stand here tonight. … Dear Immigrants, we got the job done,” Isaac enthusiastically stated, highlighting his Guatemalan roots alongside Elordi’s Australian background and Del Toro’s Mexican heritage.

After Isaac finished, Elordi took the mic, but the moment quickly shifted as the show attempted to move on. That is, until del Toro decided to chime in with his own thoughts.

“No, no, wait!” he called out. “To the rest of our extraordinary cast and crew, I want to say that their artistry shines through in every frame of this film, intentionally made by humans for humans.” He listed the various teams involved—from designers to editors—and seemed to pause briefly, contemplating how much more to say.

Then, with a grin, he stated, “AI is shit.”

In his acceptance remarks, del Toro also credited Mary Shelley for the timelessness of her work, stating, “Mary Shelley, who made this book her biography, was 18 years old when she wrote it. She posed the big questions: Who am I? What am I? Where have I come from? And where am I going?” He emphasized how her story resonated with him since childhood.

Del Toro has a unique knack for tackling complex emotional themes, and he used this platform to reflect on his feelings of not fitting in as a child. “I always knew I didn’t belong in the world like my parents and society expected,” he shared. “My place was in a distant land where monsters and sociopaths existed.”

His perspective aligns with recent work, including his involvement in the video game series *Death Stranding*, where he collaborated with renowned game developer Hideo Kojima to explore similar themes of life and connection.

Del Toro remarked on the collaboration, “Kojima has both the weirdest mind and the healthiest mind,” underlining how these contrasting ideas enrich his storytelling.