"The Toxic Avenger" New Teaser Trailer: Peter Dinklage Fights Against Workers’ Exploitation in This Darkly Campy Superhero Horror Remake with Kevin Bacon
A modern update to the cult classic tackles corporate negligence with a superhero twist—ready to take on the corrupt elite!
How can you update a campy ‘80s horror cult classic like The Toxic Avenger to make it more relevant for today’s audiences? Well, one approach could be to shift the underlying theme of toxic waste into a modern-day commentary on corporate negligence and workers’ rights.
Back in the ‘80s, environmental issues centered around major ecological disasters and pollution caused by corporations that ignored public health in favor of profit, cutting corners whenever they could. Public awareness grew as communities found themselves exposed to dangerous industrial waste. That’s why cult horror classics from the era like The Toxic Avenger, C.H.U.D., Street Trash, and Return of the Living Dead all used toxic waste as a key plot device. Even films like Batman, RoboCop, and Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles famously featured toxic ooze in their stories.
And it’s not to say that those environmental issues have been completely resolved or are no longer a major concern, but today, there are other pressing issues that could take center stage in a remake of The Toxic Avenger. And that seems to be the case, as a new teaser trailer has been released, offering a glimpse at the primary catalyst for a toxic superhero to rise and fight against corporate greed. This time, it’s a corrupt corporation with horrible workers’ comp and equally horrible insurance benefits. And with dishonest CEOs making headlines lately, the film might be arriving at the perfect time.
In this new teaser, we see Peter Dinklage as Winston Gooze, a simple ordinary janitor who has developed awful and debilitating headaches while working for 13 years at a shady corporation, owned by CEO Bob Garbinger (played by Kevin Bacon, with a ridiculous bob haircut).
Winston works in BTH’s hygiene service department, cleaning up poisonous messes. He calls it the “mop shop … what, wha!”
The problem is, Winston’s insurance won’t cover the cost of an expensive experimental drug that could cure his crippling head pain. When he finally takes the opportunity to speak to his boss directly about the issue, he not only gets the runaround but also ends up getting fired for it.
Of course, this becomes the origin story of what Winston would end up becoming: the Toxic Avenger, a mutated superhero who rises from the mucky muck to stand with workers everywhere and fight the overlords who want to exploit and crush them. He’s not only fighting the oligarchy but ripping them from limb to bloody limb. And don’t let his miniature stature fool you—he stands tall, with his toxic mop by his side. And he might just have enough power to tip the scales and take down the corrupt giants he’s up against.
He just might be the hero all blue-collar workers have been waiting for, ready to strike fear into the heart of the powerful elite. If Superman stands for truth, justice, and the American way, well, Toxic Avenger stands for cleaning up corruption, fighting for workers' rights, and giving the powerful a taste of their own toxic medicine.
Not all heroes wear capes, sometimes they wield a toxic mop and wear some serious SPF skin lotion.
Written and directed by actor/filmmaker Macon Blair (I Don't Feel at Home in This World Anymore) and also starring Taylour Paige, Jacob Tremblay, and Elijah Wood, this new Toxic Avenger remake had a bumpy road to distribution. Once seen as unreleaseable due to the nature of the violence and how darkly campy it is, the film was put on the shelf despite an enthusiastic, warmly-received world premiere at Fantastic Fest back in 2023. The film was finally picked up by the distribution label Cineverse.
The film is now slated to hit theaters later in the summer, starting August 29th. Watch the new teaser, above.
