Audiences watching Guillermo del Toro's new Frankenstein adaptation on Netflix have been left reeling after making a startling discovery about one of its lead actors.
The Shocking Revelation
Fans of the gothic horror remake, which premiered on Friday, 8 November, have taken to social media platforms like TikTok to express their amazement at realising that actress Mia Goth secretly performs two completely different roles in the film. The movie stars Oscar Isaac as the obsessed scientist Victor Frankenstein and Jacob Elordi as his monstrous creation.
Many viewers reported needing multiple watches to spot that Goth appears first as Baroness Claire, Victor Frankenstein's mother, in the opening flashback sequences. Later in the film, she transforms into Lady Elizabeth Harlander, who is engaged to Victor's brother William, played by Felix Kammerer.
Not Her First Double Act
This isn't the first time Mia Goth has pulled off such an impressive dual role transformation. Horror enthusiasts will remember she previously played both the young starlet Maxine Minx and the elderly, sinister Pearl in Ti West's 2022 film X, a character she later explored in depth in the prequel Pearl.
What makes her performance in Guillermo del Toro's Frankenstein particularly remarkable is how unrecognisable she appears in each role. One fan commented online: "I recognised Mia immediately and then gaslit myself into believing it was a different actor playing Victor's mum."
The Creative Inspiration
In a surprising behind-the-scenes revelation, Netflix confirmed that Goth didn't initially know she would be playing both women. She originally believed she'd only be portraying Elizabeth until early conversations with del Toro took an unexpected turn.
"In that moment, I saw Guillermo's eyes light up," Mia revealed. "He said to me that he hadn't completely figured out who Elizabeth would be. I wonder if, in that moment, he started to put Elizabeth and Claire together for the first time."
The actress, who recently became a mother herself, explained how this personal experience influenced her portrayal: "As much as Claire is Victor's mother, I also think there's an incredibly maternal side to Elizabeth."
The film cleverly distinguishes between Goth's two characters through colour symbolism, with Claire appearing in deep red tones while Elizabeth's wardrobe features various shades of green. This subtle visual coding helps audiences subconsciously differentiate between the roles, even if they don't immediately recognise the same actress is playing both parts.
Some observant fans have noted that this dual casting creatively mirrors a scene from Mary Shelley's original novel where Victor Frankenstein dreams of kissing Elizabeth only for her to transform into his mother's corpse, suggesting del Toro has woven this thematic element directly into his adaptation's casting.
