The Toxic Avenger (2023 film)

The Toxic Avenger is a 2023 American superhero comedy horror film written and directed by Macon Blair. It is the fifth installment in The Toxic Avenger film series. The film is produced by Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz, who also produced the previous films in the series. It stars Peter Dinklage as the title character, alongside Jacob Tremblay, Taylour Paige, Kevin Bacon, Sarah Niles, Julia Davis, Julian Kostov, and Elijah Wood. The film premiered as the opening film of Fantastic Fest on September 21, 2023.

The Toxic Avenger
Teaser poster
Directed byMacon Blair
Screenplay byMacon Blair
Based onThe Toxic Avenger
by Lloyd Kaufman
Produced by
Starring
CinematographyDana Gonzales
Edited by
  • Brett W. Bachman
  • James Thomas
Music by
  • Will Blair
  • Brooke Blair
Production
companies
Release date
Running time
102 minutes[1]
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Premise

"Set in a fantasy world following Winston, a stereotypical weakling who works as a janitor at Garb-X health club and is diagnosed with a terminal illness that can only be cured by an expensive treatment that his greedy, power hungry employer refuses to pay for. After deciding to take matters into his own hands and rob his company, Winston falls into a pit of toxic waste and is transformed into a deformed monster that sets out to do good and get back at all the people who have wronged him."[2]

Cast

Production

Development

On April 6, 2010, a remake of The Toxic Avenger (1984) was announced.[7] The remake, said to be aiming for a "family-friendly" PG-13 release similar to the animated Toxic Crusaders television series, was set to be co-written and directed by Steve Pink.[8]

On September 12, 2016, Variety reported that Conrad Vernon will direct the film, with Guillermo del Toro of Double Dare You, Bob Cooper and Alex Schwartz of Storyscape Entertainment, and Akiva Goldsman and Greg Lessans of Weed Road Pictures executive producing, while Mike Arnold and Chris Poole were attached to rewrite the screenplay by Pink and Daniel C. Mitchell.[9]

On December 10, 2018, it was announced that Legendary Pictures has won the rights to reboot The Toxic Avenger, with the original's producers, Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz of Troma Entertainment, to serve as producers.[10] On March 21 2019, Macon Blair was announced to write and direct the upcoming film.[11] During an interview with on January 11, 2021, Kaufman praised Blair and his script saying:

Macon Blair knows Troma better than I do. He’s seen everything. He’s seen the cartoon [Toxic Crusaders], he’s seen the Halloween special, he’s seen everything. And he loves our movies... I’ve read the script and it’s better than the original and I leave it to him. If I’m called upon, I’d be happy to jump in. I learned on the musical to leave the creative to the creative. I learned to let them ask so if they want me, I’m there... I hope that Legendary keeps going. If they let Macon Blair direct it, I think it will be terrific. He knows the Troma sense of humor, the combination of slapstick, and satire with the environmental theme.[12]

Casting

On May 13, 2013, Arnold Schwarzenegger was in talks for a role in the film.[13] He eventually dropped out to work on Terminator Genisys (2015).[14] On November 30, 2020, it was announced that Peter Dinklage would star in the film.[15] In April 14, 2021, Jacob Tremblay and Taylour Paige were added to the cast.[16][17] In June 11, 2021, Kevin Bacon, Julia Davis, and Elijah Wood joined the cast.[18][19]

Filming

Principal photography commenced on June 21, 2021 in Bulgaria and wrapped on August 14, 2021.[18][20][2]

Post-production

In December 2021, Dinklage stated the film is "not a remake".[21] On January 30, 2022, Blair confirmed the film will employ practical gore effects, and the time period setting will be a "little bit of both" in the past and present.[6]

Release

The Toxic Avenger premiered as the opening film of Fantastic Fest on September 21, 2023.[1]

Critical response

On the review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes, 90% of 21 critics' reviews are positive, with an average rating of 6.9/10.[22] Metacritic, which uses a weighted average, assigned the film a score of 66 out of 100, based on four critics, indicating "generally favorable" reviews.[23]

References
  1. Complex, Valerie (August 15, 2023). "Fantastic Fest Sets 2023 Lineup; Legendary Pictures' The Toxic Avenger To Open, Blumhouse Horror Comedy Totally Killer Closes". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved August 16, 2023.
  2. "Toxic Avenger Reboot Starring Peter Dinklage Wraps Production". ComicBook.com. Retrieved August 20, 2021.
  3. Tilly, Chris (August 17, 2023). "The Toxic Avenger: Plot, cast & more". Dexerto. Retrieved August 17, 2023.
  4. Nooras, Dana (August 27, 2022). "'The Toxic Avenger': Cast, Plot, Rating, and Everything We Know So Far". Collider. Retrieved March 24, 2023.
  5. @AlsoBlair (July 15, 2021). "Don't get me wrong, he's a nice guy, I like him just fine. But he's a mouthbreather. @yow_david" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  6. "Exclusive– Macon Blair discusses The Toxic Avenger remake". Bloody Flicks. January 30, 2022. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  7. Fleming, Mike, Jr. (April 6, 2010). "'The Toxic Avenger' Mops Up In Redo Deal". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on June 9, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. Lesnick, Silas (November 5, 2010). "Steve Pink to Reboot 'The Toxic Avenger'". ComingSoon.net. Archived from the original on November 7, 2010. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  9. Kroll, Justin (February 14, 2016). "'Sausage Party' Co-Director Conrad Vernon to Helm 'Toxic Avenger' Remake". Variety. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  10. Pearson, Ben (December 10, 2018). "Toxic Avenger Remake Still Developing as Legendary Scoops Up the Rights". SlashFilm. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  11. Kroll, Justin (March 21, 2019). "Macon Blair to Direct and Write 'Toxic Avenger' Reboot for Legendary". Variety. Retrieved September 17, 2019.
  12. Tinnin, Drew (January 11, 2021). "Epic Interview: Lloyd Kaufman Gives Update On TOXIC AVENGER Reboot & Talks 46 Years Of Troma". Dread Central. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  13. Kit, Borys (May 13, 2013). "Arnold Schwarzenegger in Talks to Star in 'Toxic Avenger' Remake". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  14. "TOXIC AVENGER Remake Still "Trying to Happen", Without Schwarzenegger". Nuke the Fridge. February 14, 2015. Archived from the original on July 5, 2015. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  15. Kroll, Justin (November 30, 2020). "Peter Dinklage To Star In Legendary's 'Toxic Avenger' Reboot". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  16. Kroll, Justin (April 14, 2021). "'Toxic Avenger': Jacob Tremblay Joins Peter Dinklage In The Legendary Reboot". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
  17. Kroll, Justin (May 3, 2021). "'Toxic Avenger': 'Zola' Star Taylour Paige Joins Peter Dinklage In The Legendary Reboot". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved May 3, 2021.
  18. Kit, Borys (June 11, 2021). "Kevin Bacon Tapped for Villain Role in Legendary's 'Toxic Avenger' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter.
  19. Kroll, Justin (June 16, 2021). "Julia Davis and Elijah Wood Join Peter Dinklage In Legendary's 'Toxic Avenger' Reboot". Deadline Hollywood.
  20. "The Toxic Avenger". Variety Insight. Archived from the original on June 29, 2021. Retrieved June 25, 2021.
  21. O'Hara, Helen (December 23, 2021). "Peter Dinklage Teases His 'Over-The-Top, Crazy' Toxic Avenger Movie – Exclusive". Empire. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  22. "The Toxic Avenger". Rotten Tomatoes. Fandango Media. Retrieved October 9, 2023.
  23. "The Toxic Avenger". Metacritic. Fandom, Inc. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
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