They Built a Full-Sized Boat for Guillermo del Toro’s ‘Frankenstein’

There’s one thing everyone knew for a fact going into Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein. The movie was going to look stunning. Del Toro is well-known for creating worlds that are lush and tangible. Every costume, every prop, every teeny tiny detail has to be just right. Which, of course, is exactly the case in Frankenstein. And, when it came to one specific location, things were more realistic than you probably realized.

This week, a new video surfaced talking about the production design of the film. You can see it below. In it, we learn a bit about the look of the movie, the props, and more. Then, we learn that the production also built the boat in the film at full scale. And it actually moved. It only took five entire months. Check this out.

Guillermo del Toro take us through the creation of the world of FRANKENSTEIN, alongside production designer Tamara Deverell and head of concept design Guy Davis. Critics Choice Awards Winner for Best Production Design. Watch now on Netflix. pic.twitter.com/u9SnptTyLc

— Frankenstein Film (@FrankensteinGDT) January 14, 2026

Now, obviously, big-budget movies like Frankenstein build real sets all the time. And, often, those builds take months and months to complete. But I don’t know. There’s just something epic and jaw-dropping about this in particular.  Watching the film, I never once imagined del Toro built a full-sized boat for those scenes. I just assumed it was a large piece of a set with some green screen behind it. (Which, obviously, it is at lots of points as they didn’t film it on a frozen tundra.)

To build the whole boat, to film scenes on and around it, and to not have to digitally recreate that aspect—it’s just wildly impressive. The singularity of it. The wholeness. Then you add the fact that it also has the mechanics built in to make it look like the Creature is actually moving it, and, well, it’s pretty damned awesome.

My biggest question, though, is where is the boat now? Does del Toro still have it? We know he loves a good movie prop. Imagine it’s just sitting in his backyard somewhere?

If you haven’t seen Frankenstein yet, definitely check it out on Netflix. It’s a lovely return to form for the Oscar-winning director.

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