10 Classic Movie Monsters With Unexpected Origins
8. Pan's Labyrinth's Pale Man Is A Fusion Of A Goya Painting, Manta Rays & Del Toro's Loose Skin
Guillermo del Toro is one of the most creative filmmakers working today, in large part due to his ingeniously thoughtful and often intensely unsettling creature designs.
By far the most memorable monster in his masterful Pan's Labyrinth is the Pale Man, the child-eating entity which young Ofelia (Ivana Baquero) faces off against. But the sublimely creepy monster had two very specific influences.
For starters, its wiry look and penchant for eating children were both inspired by Francisco Goya's iconic painting "Saturn Devouring His Son," while its grotesque nostrils and far-apart eyes were modelled on the underside of a manta ray.
Del Toro said, "As a kid...manta rays freaked me out - because if you flop a manta ray on its belly, you can see a little mouth and two nostril-like openings but the eyes on another side, and I find them really creepy."
As for the creature's sagging skin? That was an even more personal touch from the filmmaker, who had himself become the recipient of some loose skin after losing a significant amount of weight during pre-production.