Guillermo del Toro May Direct ‘Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark’

Guillermo del Toro Scary Stories Artwork

Guillermo del Toro (Crimson Peak) has come on board Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark as a producer and may also direct. Frequent Tim Burton collaborator John August (Frankenweenie, Corpse Bride) wrote the screenplay based on the short story collections by Alvin Schwartz.


Guillermo del Toro is a longtime fans of Scary Stories and even owns Scary Story illustrations by Stephen Gammell (he’s posing with them in the above picture). No plot details are available nor has a potential release date been announced.

Sean Daniel, Jason Brown, and Elizabeth Grave are attached to produce the film.

Per the official announcement: “Alvin Schwartz’s trilogy of short story collections have sold more than seven million copies worldwide, resulting in at least as many nightmares. From the moment the first book was published in 1984, the Scary Stories series was one of the most banned from placement by the American Library Association, as the collections were considered to be too scary for children. The ensuing controversy only helped to fuel sales, and the trilogy has remained a cultural phenomenon ever since.”