Guillermo Del Toro On Directing The Epic Opening Sequence Of ‘The Simpsons Treehouse Of Horror XXIV’, And 10 Other Facts

Guillermo del Toro has become one of the most well-known and respected directors and screenwriters in Hollywood. He is particularly applauded for his visionary abilities. While not nominated for an Oscar this year, del Toro was invited to help announce the nominees for the 2016 Academy Awards.

Guillermo Del Toro, John Krasinski To Announce Oscar Nominees: https://t.co/9ZbV1kdvBK #Oscars2016 pic.twitter.com/iCoSwm0kXj

— Film and TV Now (@filmandtvnow) January 13, 2016

As creative and unique as he is, it may not be surprising that there is more to the talented Guillermo del Toro than most fans realize. Check out these facts.

1. According to Heavy, Guillermo del Toro is not just a director and screenwriter, but an author, as well. He is currently working on writing a gothic trilogy with Chuck Hogan, the first book of which is The Strain. He also has a book of film notes and artistic musings.

2. The Strain was made into a television series for which Guillermo del Toro directed the pilot episode.

3. Guillermo del Toro directed the intro to The Simpson’s Treehouse of Horror XXIV, which is arguably one of the best ever. He once told Entertainment Weekly he preferred to take on the entire title sequence, rather than just the couch gag or a guest voice.

“The Simpsons titles are so iconic and yet they’ve never been riffed in this vein. I really wanted to land the connections between the [show’s] set pieces and the titles and some of the most iconic horror movies, and intersperse them with some of my stuff in there for pure joy.”

4. Guillermo del Toro came close to creating a video game called inSANE, which he says he still plans on doing at some point, even though game developer THQ backed out of the project in 2012 (and has since folded).

5. Guillermo del Toro has a house that he uses as his base of operation for all of his work and it’s called “The Bleak House.” The house contains all sorts of paraphernalia, including creatures from his own movies and others, blood red curtains and walls, and an incredible library that has books dating back to the 16th century.

6. With a mentor like Dick Smith, who did the makeup for The Exorcist and Amadeus, it’s no wonder Guillermo del Toro is the master of creation when it comes to ghoulish creatures.

7. Even as Pacific Rim was about to hit the theaters, Guillermo del Toro was already working on the sequel.

8. Guillermo del Toro was a mere 21-years-old when he produced his first full-length feature film, Dona Herlinda and Her Son.

This photo of young Guillermo del Toro freaks me out! @perlmutations still looks the same, though. pic.twitter.com/jm2VVOwlK1

— Eric Vespe (@EricVespe) May 13, 2015

9. Working on Hellboy was very important to Guillermo del Toro, so much so that he turned down the chance to direct a number of other movies, including Alien vs. Predator, Blade: Trinity, and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.

10. When Guillermo del Toro was filming Mimic, his father was kidnapped and held hostage for 72 days. However, del Toro says the film ended up offering poor results not because of any stress on his part, but because of interference from the producer.

11. In an interview with Indiewire Guillermo del Toro revealed that he turned down the chance to direct Star Wars: Episode VII. Apparently, his agent got a phone call.

“We got one phone call to my agent saying, ‘Is Guillermo interested?’ And basically I have so much stuff already of my own, and I’m pursuing stuff that I’m generating already… It was very flattering. It was just a phone call, it didn’t go past that, it was very nice to be asked, but believe it or not, I’m busy enough.”

[Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images]