In December, Legendary Entertainment nabbed the feature film rights to Troma’s Toxic Avenger, a hyper-violent satirical cult superhero that first appeared in a tasteless live-action film in 1984. It eventually spawned multiple sequels, a kids cartoon, a toy line, and a string of comics published by Marvel.
Set in the fictional town of Tromaville, N.J., and centered on a mild-mannered janitor at a health club who’s chased out a second story window by bullies and lands in a drum of toxic waste. The chemicals cause him to transform into the Toxic Avenger, who has superhuman size and strength and stands up to bullies and corruption.
Variety now reports that Legendary has tasked Macon Blair to write and direct their reboot of Toxic Avenger. Blair, an actor turned filmmaker is likely best known for directing the Netflix film I Don’t Feel At Home In This World Anymore.
Macon Blair has been tapped to write and direct Legendary’s reboot of the cult classic “The Toxic Avenger,” sources tell Variety. Legendary acquired the feature film rights in December and have quickly made the project a high priority at the studio. Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz of Troma Entertainment will serve as producers with Alex Garcia and Jay Ashenfelter overseeing for Legendary.
Some might remember that Guardians of The Galaxy’s James Gunn got his start working for Lloyd Kaufman and Troma Entertainment.
When and where the Toxic Avenger will go in front of cameras will likely depend on how long it takes Macon Blair to complete the script.
SOURCE: VARIETY
