the 5 extraordinary London museums that inspired Netflix’s horror movie

A near-guaranteed Oscar nominee for production design, Guillermo del Toro’s Frankenstein marries body horror, science fiction and gothic romanticism with an early 19th century period detail that deepens and enriches its world-building to hyper-immersive levels.

To help create this world, production designer Tamara Deverell and del Toro explored a handful of lesser-known London museums, gathering visual references and doing what we can only describe as historical vibe-farming. Watch the film and then head to these spots for a full immersion into the science and wonder behind this new Frankenstein. 

Sir John Soane’s Museum

Like the British Museum’s exhibits crammed into a single Georgian townhouse, this collection founded by 18th century architect Sir John Soane is a glorious overwhelm of Ancient Egyptian antiquities, Roman sculpture and architectural models. ‘Guillermo told me to go there,’ says Deverell, ‘and everything about it was inspiring’.

📍 How to Sir John Soane’s Museum

Hunterian Museum, Lincoln’s Inn Fields

To create Victor Frankenstein’s scientific tools – and a few jars of grisly gubbins for his lab – Deverell and del Toro visited one of London’s most esoteric exhibitions. Run by the Royal College of Surgeons, the Hunterian is the legacy of 18th century surgeon John Hunter. Its Evelyn table, an original 17th century anatomical chart, is replicated in the movie. ‘They had all this surgical equipment, photos, etchings and engravings from Dr Frankenstein’s time period,’ she says. ‘We visited two days before the museum reopened after a renovation and we saw them putting out all the pickled body parts in jars – it was fantastic.’

📍 How to visit the Hunterian Museum

Crossness Pumping Station, Abbey Wood

This Victorian architectural marvel has already starred in one Frankenstein movie – 2015’s Victor Frankenstein – and it plays an informational role in Guillermo del Toro’s new version. ‘I fell in love with its high-arched windows that have a circle motif that I knew Guillermo would love – I used those in Victor’s lab,’ says Deverell, who spent time there with her art department and set decorator. ‘It’s a bit stinky around there, because it’s still an active sewage treatment plant, but the old part of it is priceless.’

📍 How to visit Crossness Pumping Station

Dennis Severs’ House, Spitalfields

A Californian Anglophile, Dennis Severs bought this Grade II-listed Georgian terrace house in 1979 and transformed it into a hushed snapshot of London life for the Jervis family, a fictional Huguenot clan with a home full of Georgian and Victorian artefacts. This historical tableau was ‘inspirational to our historic time period and colour palette’, says Deverell. ‘I loved some of the tones, the ambience, the plaster and wood textures, and the use of draped fabrics in the house.’

📍 How to visit Dennis Severs’ House 

Cutty Sark, Greenwich

Two ships helped inform the design of Frankenstein’s ice-bound vessel, The Horisont. ‘I spent some time at the Cutty Sark,’ says Deverell, ‘and I visited the Tall Ship Glenlee in Glasgow in April 2023. It was so helpful to see the details of wood decking, masts and sails, and brass fittings. I took 84 photos on that visit and we used them in designing our fictional ship.’

📍 How to visit the Cutty Sark

When can I watch Frankenstein?

The movie is on Netflix worldwide now. Read our verdict.

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