Remember that time you were at the movies and thought, “I am attracted to that fish person”? Fox Searchlight certainly does. This winter’s Searchlight-funded The Shape of Water landed them a gaggle of Oscars, and they’ve decided its director is a pretty safe bet. According to Deadline, FSL and Guillermo del Toro have signed a major overall deal. Searchlight will be the home of del Toro’s upcoming projects, as well as grant him his own film label. This is a massive step for Spotlight, and a very interesting opportunity for del Toro.

del Toro heaped praise on Fox Searchlight during the last award season. He’s specifically called attention to Searchlight producers Stephen Gilula and Nancy Utley, who were responsible for giving Shape of Water a chance. del Toro credits FSL for letting his imagination flow, saying:

For the longest time, I’ve hoped to find an environment in which I can distribute, nurture and produce new voices in smart, inventive genre films and channel my own. In Fox Searchlight, I’ve found a real home for live action production — a partnership based on hard work, understanding of each other and, above all, faith.

The film label will focus on the type of movies that fans most associate with del Toro. Genre films involving science-fiction, fantasy, and of course, horror – will be its main focus. According to the Deadline piece, the first film to be on the label will be del Toro’s Antlers. No other films have been announced, but you can bet that when they are, we’ll let you know.

What del Toro projects are you excited to see from Fox Searchlight? Will some of his cancelled film ideas be reexamined? Let us know on Facebook and on Twitter. For all your Guillermo Del Toro news, keep lurking at Nightmare on Film Street. We don’t know if you can tell, but we’re all pretty big fans.