Guillermo del Toro has always been a wonderful Twitter presence, frequently sharing his unabashed love for cinema, television, and frequent collaborator Doug Jones. But after a period of silence during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic quarantine, del Toro has one-upped himself with a massive Twitter thread about the many books and films he’s consuming to get him through his quarantine.

The Shape of Water director, who has taken a break from filming his upcoming Nightmare Alley, invited his fellow filmmakers and all of Twitter to share their own reading and watch lists, and was quickly answered by the likes of Darren Aronofsky, Ava DuVernay, Rian Johnson, Ari Aster, and more, culminating in maybe the best list of recommendations floating around for free on the Internet.

Twitter can be a bad place to spend your hours during quarantine, as bad news and negative emotions can be amplified when everyone has too much time on their hands. But del Toro is seeking to make Twitter a better place, just for a little bit.

“I hope this can be about things we love,” del Toro said on Twitter. “Not about things we hate or things we are weighed down about. We cannot answer questions out in the open but please read and respond to each other as much as possible.”

1/3 Alright- here we go- just a few ideas: I hope this can be about things we love. Not about things we hate or things we are weighed down about. We cannot answer questions out in the open but please read and respond to each other as much as possible.

— Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) April 20, 2020

Del Toro kicked things off in a giant Twitter thread, in which he shared he has been streaming many titles from the Criterion Channel including Gustaf Molander’s A Woman’s Face, Ermanno Olmi’s Il Posto, and Celine Sciamma’s Girlhood and Tomboy. Meanwhile, his kids have been engaging in “bulletproof stuff” such as Singin’ in the Rain and Rear Window. And del Toro shouted out TV he loved too, including critical darlings Ozark and Better Call Saul, and the Food Network guilty pleasure Chopped.

Immediately, del Toro’s request for everyone to share things they love was answered by a slew of prominent filmmakers who shared their own watch lists. Doctor Strange director Scott Derickson recommended Alex Garland’s FX on Hulu sci-fi series Devs, while Ava DuVernay admitted to indulging in guilty pleasures like Notting Hill coupled with the Hungarian philosophical drama The Turin Horse. Ari Aster has been rewatching The Sopranos, Rian Johnson found himself surprised to love Robert Altman’s 3 Women, and to no one’s surprise, Aronofsky has been reading a lot of Henry David Thoreau.

See what the responding filmmakers had to say below. Read del Toro’s full Twitter chain here.

When you find someone with a small but incredibly deep output (on film, I can think of Jean Vigo, on books, Harper Lee or, in a different way, Capote and on painting, perhaps Vermeer) then the promise, the temptation, is to dwell longer on each piece you can access.

— Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) April 20, 2020

Or explore Sciamma along with her GIRLHOOD and TOMBOY.

Or watch REDES or Columbia Film Noir (some Joseph H Lewis in there!) or THE EXECUTIONER by Berlanga. SO much!! In my opinion, HD and Bluray are pure honey when viewing B&W films.

— Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) April 20, 2020

I loved the third season of OZARK

— Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) April 20, 2020

The TV show that I cannot recommend more strongly is Alex Garland's DEVS on Hulu. It is a compelling thriller built upon some very advanced science/philosophy many-worlds theories — and the the visuals are gorgeous. Just an amazing show.

— N O S ? ? I ? ? ? ? ? ? O ? S (@scottderrickson) April 20, 2020

gdt nice to be talking. i’ve been catching up on a lot of classics. watched so far: barton fink, amelie, roshaman, total recall (original). reading: thoreau walden and pablo neruda. listening to: KMLN and schubert. been in quarantine for 40 days. https://t.co/sv2XtVsWbO

— darren aronofsky (@DarrenAronofsky) April 20, 2020

I've been rewatching Sopranos season 3, which is a supreme work of art. Also been rewatching the TV version of 'Scenes from a Marriage.' It's been a comfort to watch two morbidly disenchanted people decimate each other in the comfort and privacy of THEIR homes.

— Ari Aster (@AriAster) April 20, 2020

And “Notting Hill.” I mean, need I say more? Caught it last night on insomnia-time cable. Delicious. “I just a girl, asking a boy…” Horse + Hound Magazine. His odd, great group of friends. Her smile where you can see every tooth. Bill Withers montage in the middle. I mean… pic.twitter.com/nrN18GbUKs

— Ava DuVernay (@ava) April 20, 2020

Re-watch: Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Which not only holds up but is even BETTER than I remembered (and I remembered it being great.) It’s tight as a drum and still somehow freewheeling and light. And in the tail end of the optical compositing era, the fx are incredible.

— Rian Johnson (@rianjohnson) April 20, 2020

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