<Tr> <Th> Budget </Th> <Td> $19.5 million </Td> </Tr> <Tr> <Th> Box office </Th> <Td> $193.9 million </Td> </Tr> <P> The Shape of Water is a 2017 American romantic fantasy drama film directed by Guillermo del Toro and written by del Toro and Vanessa Taylor . It stars Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, Doug Jones, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Octavia Spencer . Set in Baltimore in 1962, the story follows a mute custodian at a high - security government laboratory who falls in love with a captured humanoid amphibian creature . </P> <P> The Shape of Water was screened in the main competition section of the 74th Venice International Film Festival, where it premiered on August 31, 2017, and was awarded the Golden Lion for best film in the competition . It also screened at the 2017 Toronto International Film Festival . It began a limited release in two theaters in New York City on December 1, 2017, before expanding following December 8, 2017, and has grossed $193 million worldwide . A novelization by del Toro and Daniel Kraus was published on March 6, 2018 . </P>

Who was the lead actress in the shape of water