"It's only in modern times that we have come to glorify vampirism"
About this Quote
The intent is pointed: to remind us that the vampire wasn’t always a heartthrob. In older folklore, the undead are warnings - about disease, about outsiders, about death’s refusal to stay buried. Modernity flips the moral signage. We don’t just fear the vampire; we aestheticize it, eroticize it, give it a tragic backstory and a better tailor. Del Toro is calling out that inversion: the cultural move where danger becomes a brand, where the “bad” is redeemed not through change but through charisma.
The subtext reaches beyond horror. “Vampirism” reads as a metaphor for systems that feed on people while insisting they’re desirable: celebrity culture, luxury capitalism, even certain forms of love-as-consumption. The “only in modern times” jab implies this isn’t timeless myth; it’s a contemporary habit, born of marketing, fandom, and a media ecosystem that rewards glamour over ethics.
It works because it’s compact, accusatory, and a little funny: a monster movie guy pointing at the audience and asking why we’re cheering for the bite.
Quote Details
| Topic | Movie |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
| Cite |
Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Toro, Guillermo del. (2026, January 17). It's only in modern times that we have come to glorify vampirism. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/its-only-in-modern-times-that-we-have-come-to-53674/
Chicago Style
Toro, Guillermo del. "It's only in modern times that we have come to glorify vampirism." FixQuotes. January 17, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/its-only-in-modern-times-that-we-have-come-to-53674/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"It's only in modern times that we have come to glorify vampirism." FixQuotes, 17 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/its-only-in-modern-times-that-we-have-come-to-53674/. Accessed 2 Mar. 2026.


