Summary
- Horror maestro Guillermo del Toro is teaming up with Heritage Auctions for a three-part sale of relics from his infamous 10,000-piece cabinet of curiosities
- The first installment of the Bleak House auction will start on September 26 with hundreds of concept artworks, memorabilia and artifacts up for grabs
From his early Cronos to his most recent Frankenstein – which earned a near 15-minute standing ovation at the Venice Film Festival – Guillermo del Toro has secured the title as the “godfather of modern Gothic.” Offscreen, his love for the occult, monstrous and macabre manifests as a two-story residence in suburban Los Angeles, with over 10,000 artworks, books and artifacts collected over a lifetime. Sure, tons of creative big shots have skeletons in the closet, but del Toro’s infamous “Bleak House” is something closer to a crypt.
Later this month, Heritage Auctions is hosting the first installment of a three-part sale, offering up works from the auteur’s storied cabinet of curiosities. Of the hundreds of gems up for grabs are props and maquettes from his most iconic films, such as The Shape of Water, Hellboy II and Pacific Rim, as well as horror history at large.
Central to the sale is its array of original concept artworks from del Toro’s own Pan’s Labyrinth and Cronos, alongside an H.R. Giger design for the unrealized sci-fi script, The Tourist. A concept piece by Raúl Villares for the mill in Pan’s Labyrinth, which hung in del Toro’s office for years, remains among the director’s most difficult to part with. “For years it served as inspiration. This is what should have been, in all its glory,” he wrote in a recent press statement.
The decision to partially deconstruct Bleak came to the filmmaker after a close call with the California wildfires earlier this year: “This predicament has made me aware of the impossible size of the collection and the responsibility to share this meticulously curated treasure trove with others who might accept the vow to save these pieces of culture and beauty for the generations that follow.”
“Whoever buys or gets it is going to love it as much,” the filmmaker told The Associated Press. “That’s all you can do with your kids — sort of plan for them to have a good life after you.”
Head to the house’s website to check out the lot for yourself. Items from the first Bleak House auction will be on preview at Heritage’s Beverly Hills gallery for select dates between September 11 through 25, with its second and third installments slated for spring and winter of 2026.
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