Some ghosts don’t fade. Celebrating 25 years of Guillermo del Toro’s The Devil’s Backbone… and it’s still not done haunting us. Welcome to Guillermo’s twisted tales, where monsters have hearts…and humans? Well, that’s debatable. If you know me (you don’t, but let’s pretend), you know my passion is shining a light on underappreciated and forgotten horror films. One of those just so happens to be del Toro’s early classic. The Devil’s Backbone—my first introduction to his wonderful work.

Currently celebrating the 25th anniversary with a first-time 4K restoration collector’s edition, it will feature improved detail and a new introduction from del Toro himself, along with legacy extras, including an in-depth making-of featurette, commentary tracks, and much more. As a physical media aficionado, I can’t wait!

There was a time, before big studio projects and Oscar wins that made Guillermo del Toro a household name, when he was a struggling filmmaker honing his craft — which, as a young creative myself, made me search out his work. His lifelong love of horror, as well as his hands-on approach, mirrored my own interests as a Monster Kid and voracious cinephile. Guillermo’s passion for his art and love for horror resonated strongly with me.

Before the world caught on, del Toro was already building a dark, dreamy monster playground. Growing up in Guadalajara, Mexico, as a self-described ‘lonely kid’ raised on horror movies and Catholic imagery, he had an appreciation for practical effects and the beauty of the grotesque. Even early on, Guillermo wasn’t concerned with cheap scares—he was meticulously crafting the kind of emotional connection that you feel in your bones.

Hollywood came calling, but the transition to big-budget films wasn’t exactly smooth with his first American studio film, Mimic. Turbulent experiences with Harvey Weinstein at Miramax and creative clashes over creative decisions nearly pushed him away from the studio system entirely. But instead of folding, he found support from indie production company El Deseo and shot The Devil’s Backbone with full artistic control and final cut. The film remains a blueprint for del Toro’s unadulterated creativity: misunderstood monsters–