Del Toro: 'No Goddamn AI' in Pan's Labyrinth 3D Re-Release

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- Guillermo del Toro converted Pan's Labyrinth to 3D by hand for its 20th anniversary, telling a San Diego Comic-Con audience he chose 'good' over 'quick' and declaring 'absolutely no goddamn AI' — a line that drew applause
- Pan's Labyrinth returns to theaters Oct. 9 in both 3D and 2D HDR, with each version personally overseen by del Toro; tickets go on sale Sept. 9
- Cineverse and Fathom 4K are distributing the re-release
- Del Toro teased an upcoming documentary exploring the making of the original film, featuring appearances and commentary from Jacob Elordi, Cate Blanchett, and Charlie Day
- Pan's Labyrinth earned $83 million worldwide in 2006 and won three of six Oscar nominations — for makeup, cinematography, and art direction
- Del Toro debuted a 4K restoration of the film at the Cannes Film Festival earlier this year, earning several minutes of applause; the original famously received a 22-minute standing ovation at Cannes two decades ago
Why it matters: Del Toro is turning a routine anniversary re-release into a public artistic stance, personally supervising a hand-converted 3D version while publicly rejecting AI in post-production. His framing — 'protecting a lineage of art' — reframes the AI-in-Hollywood debate around craft transmission rather than efficiency, with del Toro putting his own name on every frame of the Oct. 9 release.



