The Toxic Avenger
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Follows the story of struggling everyman-janitor Winston Gooze, who is transformed by a horrible toxic accident into a new evolution of hero: The Toxic Avenger! Now with super-human strength and wielding a glowing mop for his unconventional weapon, he must race against time to save his son and stop a ruthless and power-hungry corporate tyrant bent on harnessing toxic superpowers to strengthen his polluted empire.
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Filmed in Bulgaria.
Writer/director Macon Blair had a recent interview, where he talks a bit about what fans can expect from this remake, saying: "Troma fans are passionate and dedicated and it’s important to make a movie they feel like honors the original. I don’t presume we’re going to be able to please every single person but the intention and the hope is that fans will feel like we’ve preserved some of that Kaufman vibe. But at the same time, we want to make a movie that will connect with contemporary audiences who may not have heard of Troma or Toxie, who are coming into it without that context, so it can’t all be winks and nods and rehash of the original." (2/1/22)
Johnny Coyne plays "a shadowy criminal figure."
Sarah Niles plays "a corrupt city official."
Kevin Bacon is set to play a villain in the film.
Peter Dinklage (Game of Thrones) plays The Toxic Crusader.
Macon Blair (I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore) is set to write and direct. (3/22/19)
Big budget production company Legendary Entertainment is apparently producing the project now. It also seems that Conrad Vernon is no longer directing. (12/10/18)
Not much of an update aside from Lloyd Kaufman talking briefly about the project in a recent interview, saying: "Conrad Vernon, who directed Shrek 2 and Sausage Party is attached. I have spoken to him and he knows all the Troma movies and is a big fan. I think he really understands The Toxic Avenger and I believe he will bring a cartoon sensibility to it. This is his first live-action movie and we hope it gets rolling soon." (5/17/18)
According writer/director Kevin Smith (Tusk, Yoga Hosers) he was at one point offered to direct the remake, but turned it down after he couldn't agree with the producers. Here's what he had to say: "...somebody asked me, 'Hey man, we've got THE TOXIC AVENGER and we're gonna remake it, do a reboot, and hey, you're from Jersey.' And you know, I always kind of dug what Lloyd Kaufman and the Troma people do, it was right in Jersey, I remember seeing them on the news all the time - 'Hollywood, motion pictures in New Jersey? Right here at Troma!' And TOXIC AVENGER was insanely well known. So I always respected the Troma world and Toxie franchise. So I was like, all right, I'll go down the rabbit hole a bit and see what's what." Adding... "we parted ways fundamentally on the budget, because I was just like, 'Part of the charm of the TOXIC AVENGER is that it was made for two nickels. If you're gonna do it again, don't spend a lot of money.' But they were like, 'No no no, it's a 35 million dollar movie.' And I was like, 'It's a fuckin' remake of THE TOXIC AVENGER, the guy in a tutu with a bad makeup job, what are we gonna spend all the money on?' So right then and there, I'm clearly not on the same page. In my head, if I need to see a TOXIC AVENGER remake, it should be done in the spirit of the original. Instead, they were literally trying to start a franchise, Marvel-ize it and stuff like that. And I'm like, 'I don't know if you guys saw that movie.' So I just quietly stepped away. I understand what they were going for, but I would never want to see that version of the movie. It would be like somebody doing a 35 million dollar version of CLERKS. Why would you bother?" (12/1/17)
Conrad Vernon (Sausage Party) is set to direct and was quoted saying: "The opportunity to re-imagine a favorite cult-classic from my high school years is an honor. Toxie is an underground icon. My favorite kind." (9/12/16)
Mike Arnold and Chris Poole (Archer) will rewrite the script. (9/12/16)
Steve Pink (Hot Tub Time Machine) was originally set to direct and co-wrote an early draft, which told the story of "an average teen who joins an environmental club to impress his crush. While doing some investigating at a waste plant, he is thrown into a tub of waste and transforms into a radioactive hero."
It's said that this film will be a more grounded and mainstream telling of the story.
The original goal for the remake was to turn "Toxie into a green superhero for these environmentally conscious times."
Producer Richard Saperstein originally intended to make this a more quirky family friendly PG-13 action-comedy, in the vein of films like The Mask, but that idea seems to have been dropped.
Initially this was intended to re-launch the franchise and include up to four sequels, an animated TV series and comic books.
This is said to be a "contemporary re-imagining" of the original 1984 Troma film with the same name.