Grap your mop, everyone: the Toxic Avenger is back. In the mid-‘80s, the original The Toxic Avenger became the definition of a cult favourite – a scuzzy, super lo-fi blast from the team at Troma Entertainment, with a janitor transformed into a melty-fleshed crimefighter after a toxic waste incident. Produced for just $500,000, it became something of a VHS legend with its gnarly effects, and transgressive energy. Several decades later, ‘Toxie’ is back in an all-new take on The Toxic Avenger – with Blue Ruin and Green Room star Macon Blair as its writer-director, bringing fresh mayhem to the screen. This time, the Toxic Avenger is played by Peter Dinklage (with Luisa Guerreiro under all the makeup after the transformation), and there’s a stacked cast all round for this one. Check out the UK trailer exclusively here:
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And here’s some snazzy new poster art, oozing retro cool.
As well as Dinklage, you get Jacob Tremblay as his son Wade Gooze, Zola’s Taylour Paige as JJ Doherty, and Kevin Bacon and Elijah Wood (with some particularly unsettling straggly hair) as Bob and Fritz Garbinger. And fear not, purists – this new version has the thumbs-up from original Toxic Avenger creator Lloyd Kaufman. Here’s the official synopsis: “Winston Gooze is an ordinary worker, who after a shocking accident, transforms a downtrodden janitor into a mutant vigilante. Armed with his signature mop, the unlikely hero battles freaks, gangsters and corrupt CEOs while trying to save his relationship with his son.”
Get ready to melt with excitement for the very 18-rated The Toxic Avenger when it hits UK cinemas on 29 August.