A bold milestone for Guillermo del Toro as he joins cinema greats in receiving the BFI Fellowship
Mexican filmmaker Guillermo del Toro is set to be honored with the British Film Institute’s highest accolade, the BFI Fellowship. The award places him alongside legendary figures such as David Lean, Akira Kurosawa, Orson Welles, and Martin Scorsese, acknowledging his extraordinary impact on film and the distinctive artistry he brings to both animation and live-action storytelling. The recognition also highlights his significant influence as a Mexican filmmaker working fluently in Spanish and English.
Del Toro will accept the BFI Fellowship during the BFI Chair’s dinner in London next May, with the event hosted by BFI chair Jay Hunt. In addition to the formal presentation, he will participate in a public career conversation at BFI Southbank, be celebrated with a retrospective of his work, and curate a special film season at the same venue. The fellowship celebration will also include a series of masterclasses for aspiring filmmakers from the BFI Film Academy and a visit to the BFI National Archive.
In a statement, del Toro described the honor as a once-in-a-lifetime moment and a dream realized, expressing gratitude for the chance to be part of the BFI’s esteemed circle. He noted his long-standing admiration for British cinema and the fruitful collaborations he has enjoyed with talented colleagues on both sides of the camera over the years. He conveyed his appreciation to the BFI for the recognition and pledged to work hard to live up to the trust placed in him.
The director’s ties to the BFI extend back to his early days as a projectionist in Mexico, where he sourced prints from the BFI National Archives and even secured Mexico’s first screening of Michael Powell’s Peeping Tom. At a recent TCM event in Los Angeles celebrating the BFI National Archive’s 90th anniversary, del Toro discussed the British films and filmmakers that shaped his craft. He cited influences ranging from Alfred Hitchcock’s silent-era The Lodger to Powell and Pressburger’s Black Narcissus and The Red Shoes, and he highlighted how these works informed his Oscar-winning film The Shape of Water. He also pointed to Martin Rosen’s Watership Down as a notable inspiration.
BFI Chair Jay Hunt praised del Toro as an extraordinary filmmaker with a longstanding relationship with the organization, noting that his collaborations across the industry underscore the strength of the wider screen ecosystem. Hunt emphasized that del Toro’s work is instantly recognizable for its bold imagination and fantastical scope, and that bestowing the BFI Fellowship signals a profound acknowledgment of his cinematic contributions and the inspiration he provides to audiences and filmmakers around the world.
As part of the celebration, the BFI will re-release del Toro’s debut feature Cronos (1992) in May, following a 4K remaster by the BFI and Les Films du Camelia. The title will then roll out to cinemas across the United Kingdom. Cronos helped launch del Toro’s international career, earning nine Ariel Awards in Mexico, the grand prize at Cannes Critics Week, and drawing the attention of Miramax, which supported his English-language debut Mimic (1997).
Del Toro’s career spans a wide spectrum, from big-budget comic adaptations like Blade II (2002), Hellboy (2004), and Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008), to large-scale spectacles such as Pacific Rim (2013) and Crimson Peak (2015). He has also delivered acclaimed dramas like Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) and The Shape of Water (2017), and ventured into stop-motion animation with Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio (2022). His most recent project, a Netflix-curated reimagining of Frankenstein featuring Jacob Elordi, Oscar Isaac, and Mia Goth, premiered at the Venice Film Festival and is widely regarded as a frontrunner for awards.
Past recipients of the BFI Fellowship include iconic figures such as Bette Davis, Ousmane Sembène, Elizabeth Taylor, Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, Thelma Schoonmaker, Derek Jarman, Satyajit Ray, and Yasujirō Ozu. More recent honorees have included Tilda Swinton, Spike Lee, Christopher Nolan, Tom Cruise, and the producers behind James Bond, Barbara Broccoli and Michael G. Wilson.
Would you agree that this milestone both reflects del Toro’s diverse talents and signals a broader appreciation for genre-blending storytelling in modern cinema? Share your thoughts on how this recognition might shape future projects or inspire emerging filmmakers in the comments.
