Danny DeVito honored at Sitges on 'Matilda' 30th anniversary

Actor, producer and director Danny DeVito arrived at the Sitges Film Festival Thursday to present his new film 'Drag' and to receive the festival's Grand Honorary Prize. 

Looking back on his career, DeVito singled out Oswald Cobblepot, the Penguin, as his favorite character, whom he played in 1992's 'Batman Returns.' DeVito said he loves the character, "because Tim Burton allowed me to drool and go crazy."

He also recalled 'Matilda,' a film he directed and acted in, noting that working with children was "really wonderful.

"It was a joy to work with the kids," he said, adding that its a "true honor" to be recieving the Grand Honorary Award on the 30th anniversary of 'Matilda.' The 1996 film screens at the festival Saturday. 

'Drag,' which DeVito produced with his son Jake, is a horror-comedy about two sisters with a strained relationship who break into a house in rural New York state. 

"You never know what's going to happen in the film," DeVito said. "This is the kind of movie I really like, one that holds a surprise." 

Record year

With four days of the festival still to go, the Sitges Film Festival is headed for another record year. Mònica Garcia, director of the Sitges Film Festival Foundation, said organizers have "broken through the ceiling." 

"We have seen 6% growth (in ticket sales), and box office revenue already surpassed one million euros," she said. At the same point last year, itself a record-breaking edition, revenue stood at €920,000. 

Garcia anticipates that by the end of the festival, they will see an overall increase of 7-8% compared to last year. She specified that while ticket sales are up by 6%, revenue has increased by 10%, largely because audiences are purchasing larger ticket bundles, which has led to a significant boost in total earnings.

The festival, Garcia said, cannot sell more tickets because it doesn't have enough screening venues. An additional venue, the Retiro, will open next year to help alleviate this problem as Garcia noted 99% of this year's problems came because "everyone wants to see the same films at the same times, leading to moments of absolute saturation." 

She hopes the Retiro will bring "a more natural and less congested flow."

Sitges 2027

Festival director Ángel Sala announced Wednesday that the 2027 edition will celebrate the 50th anniversary of Steven Spielberg's 'Close Encounters of the Third Kind' and Dario Argento's 'Suspiria.' 

He called 'Close Encounters' "arguably Steven Spielberg's best film, one that remains highly relevant, as it deals with ordinary people in extraordinary situations." 

The festival will pay tribute to it and explore the "visitor" theme in science fiction cinema, while 'Suspiria' will be a springboard to revisit witches in cinema. 

Next year is also the 50th anniversary of 'Star Wars: A New Hope,' and Sala said the festival will include a nod to it.

Robert Eggers returns

Robert Eggers, director of 'The Witch,' 'The Lighthouse' and 'Nosferatu,' received the festival's Time Machine Award in recognition of his career and his close ties to the festival and to the fantasy and horror genres. 

"It means a lot to me to return to Sitges," he said, recalling that his first film, 'The Witch,' screened at the festival and "in a way, changed my life." 

"There is nothing I enjoy more than being at a genre film festival, especially in Sitges," he said. 

After accepting the award, he presented a clip from his upcoming film, 'Werwulf,' due in Spanish theaters January 8, 2027, followed by a screening of 'The Witch.' 

"You will be among the first people on the planet to see something from it, and quite possibly the first in Europe," he told the audience.

Eggers first came to Sitges in 2015, when he opened the festival's 48th edition with 'The Witch,' alongside actress Anya Taylor-Joy. The film arrived fresh from the Sundance Film Festival, where he won the award for best director. 

'The Lighthouse,' a period drama starring Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson, screened out of competition in 2019. His latest feature, 'Nosferatu' (2024), earned four Oscar nominations, and Sitges itself named it one of "the best genre films of 2024." 

'Werwulf' is a folk-horror story set in 14th-century England, in which a mysterious creature terrorizes a rural community. Co-written with Icelandic author and screenwriter Sjón, it stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Lily-Rose Depp and Willem Dafoe.

The festival, now in its 59th edition, runs until October 18.