Director Guillermo del Toro Playfully Referenced His English-Language Debut Film 'Mimic' in New Film 'Nightmare Alley'
Eagle-eyed viewers of director Guillermo del Toro's newly released Nightmare Alley may have been treated to a little surprise if they caught the Easter egg the director playfully placed in the background of one of the scenes in the film.
Known for his visionary horror flicks, del Toro hid a reference to his English-language debut film Mimic in his latest cinematic offering.
In an interview with /Film, art director Tamara Deverell revealed that del Toro had requested her to recreate the "Jesus Saves" neon sign that appeared in Mimic for Nightmare Alley.
Deverell explained that she and and del Toro had first worked together on Mimic and reunited for Nightmare Alley, making this reference a natural extension of their collaboration.
The 'Jesus Saves' neon that we built was actually a little bit of an Easter egg. Years ago, I worked with Guillermo on a movie called Mimic. We built that same cross, that same 'Jesus Saves' very similar. It played where this priest is running away from the creature monster and falls with this big neon sign in the background. When Guillermo said, 'Let's do that sign again,' I was like, 'Oh my God, I can't believe I'm designing and building that sign again.' It was fun to do it again."
With this lighthearted throwback to his 1997 English-language debut, del Toro and Deverell prove their long-lasting professional relationship; We love to see filmmakers enjoy working together and continuing to make wonderful works for many years after their initial collaboration.
Nightmare Alley was released in theaters on December 17, 2021 - you can see it now.
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