Popularity: 6 (history)
| Director: | Guillermo del Toro |
|---|---|
| Writer: | Matthew Robbins, Guillermo del Toro |
| Staring: |
| A disease carried by common cockroaches is killing Manhattan children. In an effort to stop the epidemic an entomologist, Susan Tyler, creates a mutant breed of insect that secretes a fluid to kill the roaches. This mutant breed was engineered to die after one generation, but three years later Susan finds out that the species has survived and evolved into a large, gruesome monster that can mimic human form. | |
| Release Date: | Aug 22, 1997 |
|---|---|
| Director: | Guillermo del Toro |
| Writer: | Matthew Robbins, Guillermo del Toro |
| Genres: | Science Fiction, Horror |
| Keywords | insect, experiment, mutation, giant insect, cockroach, nest, creature, disease, scientist, epidemic, evolution, sewer, manhattan, new york city, virus, tunnel, animal horror |
| Production Companies | Dimension Films |
| Box Office |
Revenue: $25,480,490
Budget: $30,000,000 |
| Updates |
Updated: Jul 29, 2025 Entered: Apr 13, 2024 |
| Name | Character |
|---|---|
| Mira Sorvino | Susan Tyler |
| Jeremy Northam | Peter Mann |
| Alexander Goodwin | Chuy |
| Giancarlo Giannini | Manny |
| Charles S. Dutton | Leonard |
| Josh Brolin | Josh |
| Alix Koromzay | Remy |
| F. Murray Abraham | Dr. Gates |
| James Costa | Ricky |
| Javon Barnwell | Davis |
| Norman Reedus | Jeremy |
| Ho Pak-Kwong | Preacher |
| Glenn Bang | Yang |
| Margaret Ma | Chinese Woman |
| Warna Fisher | Bag Lady |
| Alan Argue | Skeletal Bum |
| Charles Hayter | Homeless Man |
| Julian Richings | Workman |
| James Kidnie | Subway Repairman |
| Eve English | Homeless Woman |
| Bill Lasovich | Long John |
| Doug Jones | Long John |
| Roger Clown | Long John |
| Greg Bronson | Reporter (uncredited) |
| Name | Job |
|---|---|
| Matthew Robbins | Screenplay, Screenstory |
| Marco Beltrami | Original Music Composer |
| Dan Laustsen | Director of Photography |
| Patrick Lussier | Editor |
| Suzanne Smith Crowley | Casting |
| Shelley Cook | Stunts |
| Doug Coleman | Stunts |
| Dan Bradley | Stunt Coordinator |
| Peter Devaney Flanagan | Editor |
| Kerry Barden | Casting |
| Billy Hopkins | Casting |
| Marie-Sylvie Deveau | Costume Design |
| Carol Spier | Production Design |
| Elinor Rose Galbraith | Set Decoration |
| Bob Kensinger | Set Decoration |
| Cyndi Ochs | Art Department Coordinator |
| Al Broussard | Special Effects Coordinator |
| Bob Munroe | Animation Director |
| John Casey | Costume Supervisor |
| Dug Rotstein | Script Supervisor |
| Donald A. Wollheim | Short Story |
| Dennis Chapman | Unit Production Manager |
| Kerry Hayes | Still Photographer |
| Bryan Forde | Gaffer |
| Mike Kirilenko | Key Grip |
| Candide Franklyn | Dolly Grip |
| Glen Gauthier | Sound Recordist |
| Steve Switzer | Boom Operator |
| Jeff J.J. Authors | Second Unit Director |
| Brian Jennings | Visual Effects Supervisor |
| Colin Cunningham | Visual Effects |
| Mark Griffith | Digital Intermediate Colorist |
| Tamara Deverell | Art Direction |
| Donald Mowat | Makeup Department Head |
| Rob Bottin | Creature Design |
| Branko Racki | Stunt Coordinator |
| Rick Bota | Second Unit Director |
| Robert Rodriguez | Second Unit Director |
| Eric Chambers | Stunts |
| Kathy Jarvis | Stunt Double |
| Lora Hirschberg | Sound Re-Recording Mixer |
| Guillermo del Toro | Screenplay, Director, Screenstory |
| John Sayles | Additional Writing |
| Name | Title |
|---|---|
| Ole Bornedal | Producer |
| Bob Weinstein | Producer |
| B.J. Rack | Producer |
| Cary Granat | Co-Producer |
| Michael Phillips | Executive Producer |
| Clark Henderson | Associate Producer |
| Richard Potter | Co-Producer |
| Scott Shiffman | Co-Producer |
| Michael Zoumas | Co-Producer |
| Harvey Weinstein | Co-Executive Producer |
| Stuart Cornfeld | Co-Executive Producer |
| Andrew Rona | Co-Producer |
| Organization | Category | Person |
|---|
Popularity History
| Year | Month | Avg | Max | Min |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 4 | 25 | 46 | 14 |
| 2024 | 5 | 26 | 46 | 18 |
| 2024 | 6 | 21 | 34 | 14 |
| 2024 | 7 | 25 | 47 | 14 |
| 2024 | 8 | 22 | 48 | 13 |
| 2024 | 9 | 18 | 39 | 11 |
| 2024 | 10 | 20 | 36 | 13 |
| 2024 | 11 | 18 | 41 | 12 |
| 2024 | 12 | 16 | 21 | 12 |
| 2025 | 1 | 20 | 39 | 13 |
| 2025 | 2 | 13 | 21 | 3 |
| 2025 | 3 | 6 | 19 | 1 |
| 2025 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 1 |
| 2025 | 5 | 3 | 7 | 2 |
| 2025 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 2 |
| 2025 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 2025 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 2025 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 2 |
| 2025 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 2 |
Trending Position
| Year | Month | High | Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 10 | 897 | 897 |
| Year | Month | High | Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 7 | 897 | 927 |
| Year | Month | High | Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 5 | 887 | 936 |
| Year | Month | High | Avg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 4 | 689 | 782 |
Really good watch, will watch again, and do recommend. This is "the movie with bugs that look like people", there aren't a lot of unique ideas out there, so I like celebrating the ones I can point too. While the cast and acting was really good, what makes this is the concept, the atmospheric t ... ension and the practical efforts for the monsters. This is about as close as you can get to being thrown into a termite hive without Rick Moranis or Hank Pym shrinking fools down. Sometimes it is fun to see a pre-apocalyptic story instead of one where the world is already ruined by calamity.
This is quite an entertaining little sci-fi thriller about a worm that turned! "Tyler" (Mira Sorvino) is a distinguished scientist who created a bug that could kill cockroaches that were carriers for a deadly disease. Thing is, though, these super-bugs have started to get a bit out of control, and i ... t isn't long before they decide that it's time to turn the tables on their creators - despite some supposedly limiting genetic engineering developed to inhibit precisely that! People are quite literally dropping like flies, so she and "Peter" (Jeremy Northam) have to come up with a solution before mankind gets gobbled up in a particularly gruesome manner. Sure, the acting and the dialogue are all pretty routine, but the visual effects have something of "The Fly" (1986) to them, as does the story and there is less frenetic panic in this that we see in many other films of this genre. Dare I say, there is even the merest hint of actual science. It is clearly sending us a message that however we may try to plan ahead for any eventuality, when survival of a species is at stake nature finds a way to get round even the most watertight of safety features. The ending smacks very much of sequel, but I doubt that will be able to develop the story much beyond the perfectly adequate conclusion offered here. It's fine to watch on the telly, but you are unlikely to recall it for long afterwards.