“Frankenstein” will be released on Netflix on November 7, but it has already premiered in theaters, putting Jacob Elordi back in the spotlight. The A-lister has taken a bold turn in his career, stepping into the role of Victor Frankenstein’s tragic creation.
He’s become almost unrecognizable, both in appearance and in the eyes of those who once saw him only as “the Euphoria guy.” Here’s how he prepared to bring the iconic monster back to life on the big screen.
Inside Jacob Elordi’s Preparation to Play Frankenstein’s Monster
According to IMDb, the actor spent as many as ten hours a day in the makeup chair, undergoing a painstaking makeover to become Guillermo del Toro’s version of the monster.
To meet his early call times, he would sometimes arrive at the makeup trailer at ten o’clock at night and work straight through until morning. Director Guillermo del Toro later said he came to see Elordi as “superhuman,” explaining that the actor never once complained, never said he was tired or hungry, and continued filming even on twenty-hour days.
Source: Netflix
Elordi approached the role with complete dedication. He immersed himself in the physical and psychological aspects of the character, studying Japanese butoh dance to master the creature’s unsettling movements and learning Mongolian throat singing to find the right sound and rhythm for the monster’s voice. Every detail mattered to him, and del Toro praised his commitment as something extraordinary. The result is a performance that captures both the creature’s pain and its strange grace.
The monster in del Toro’s film is visually based on Bernie Wrightson’s celebrated illustrations of Mary Shelley’s creature, which have long been considered among the most definitive artistic interpretations of the character. To better understand the monster’s appearance and essence, Jacob Elordi surrounded himself with the same imagery, filling his apartment with the artist’s haunting drawings. He described it as a way of keeping the creature close even when he was off set. “Bernie’s pictures were all over the walls,” Elordi said. “Maybe when you’re asleep, or just by walking around it all, you end up soaking it in.”
Jacob Elordi’s metamorphosis for “Frankenstein” marks a defining moment in his trajectory, one that proves his willingness to push beyond comfort and expectation. What began as a physically punishing role became a deeply personal journey into the heart of a misunderstood creation. Under Guillermo del Toro’s direction, Elordi didn’t just play the monster — he inhabited its loneliness, strength, and fragile humanity.
