The Bride!: First Look at Christian Bale’s Frankenstein in Maggie Gyllenhaal Movie

The Bride!, Maggie Gyllenhaal’s long-awaited riff on The Bride of Frankenstein is looming — and today, the internet has its first look at Christian Bale in his role as Frankenstein. The image, like recent takes on The Joker and The Crow, has prominent tattoos featured in his character design — although it isn’t quite as much of a departure here as it was for somebody like Joker, especially since Frankenstein, by his nature, has a lot of…ahem…body modifications. The stitches and staples, plus some scarring, remain intact in the Bale version, so it’s not too likely there will be a lot of fans complaining online this time. 

Gyllenhaal is set to direct, write, and produce the film. Jessie Buckley stars as the titular bride of Frankenstein’s monster. Given the exclamation point in The Bride!‘s title treatment, it seems like it might be leaning into an Old Hollywood aesthetic, but that’s a big leap considering how little we know.

Discussing Film debuted the image on social media. You can see it here:

Here’s how The Bride! is described in its official synopsis: 

A lonely Frankenstein travels to 1930s Chicago to seek the aid of a Dr. Euphronius in creating a companion for himself. The two reinvigorate a murdered young woman and the Bride is born. She is beyond what either of them intended, igniting a combustible romance, the attention of the police, and a wild and radical social movement.

Emma Tillinger Koskoff, Talia Kleinhendler, and Osnat Handelsman-Keren also produce.

The Bride! will also star Jessie Buckley as the Bride (so, sorry, kids — no Bale/Gyllenhaal Dark Knight reunion onscreen), Peter Sarsgaard, Annette Bening, and Penelope Cruz.

The Bride! is currently set to hit theaters on October 3, 2025.

Are you excited for the new Bride of Frankenstein film? Let us know your thoughts in the comments or hit up @comicbook on Threads.