Jacob Elordi breaks down as Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein earns 13-minute standing ovation at Venice, watch

Jacob Elordi and Oscar Isaac earn a 13minute standing ovation for Frankenstein

Jacob Elordi couldn’t hold back his emotions as Guillermo del Toro’s long-anticipated Frankenstein received a roaring 13-minute standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival — the longest of this year’s event so far.

For del Toro, the film represents a dream nearly twenty years in the making. The Oscar-winning director has often spoken of Frankenstein as the one story he “would kill to make,” and began sketching ideas and concepts for it as far back as 2008.

Now, after years of waiting and a determined production last year, his vision of Mary Shelley’s 1818 classic has finally made it to the big screen.

Elordi, who plays the Creature, was visibly moved during the ovation, captured on video by Variety. At one point, he threw his arms around del Toro, before Oscar Isaac — who stars as Victor Frankenstein — pulled him in for a hug and kissed him on the cheek.

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The audience, meanwhile, only grew louder with their cheers, while del Toro stood beaming beside his cast.

The ensemble is nothing short of remarkable. Alongside Elordi and Isaac are Mia Goth, Christoph Waltz, Ralph Ineson, Felix Kammerer, and Charles Dance, each adding weight to the gothic world del Toro has created.

Online, fans have already been swept up in the excitement. One Instagram user wrote: “I CANNOT WAIT to see this film!!!!”, while another shared: “Congratulations to the whole team and specially to Guillermo Del Toro. He deserves this .”

Critics are equally effusive. Metro’s Tori Brazier praised the movie as “vibrant, dramatic and macabre,” noting that while it bends Shelley’s original tale, the changes deepen its meditation on life, death, and human ambition. She also warned the squeamish to be prepared: the film doesn’t hold back when it comes to gore.

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With its 13-minute ovation, Frankenstein now sits alongside The Brutalist and The Banshees of Inisherin as one of Venice’s most celebrated premieres, second only to the 18-minute applause given to The Room Next Door in 2024.

After its glittering debut in Venice, the film will see a limited cinema release in October before arriving on Netflix in November. Judging by the rapturous response, del Toro’s Frankenstein is set to be one of 2025’s defining cinematic events.