Peter Dinklage starred in a reboot of the cult horror classic The Toxic Avenger way back in 2023, but the movie is only just coming out this year. Lloyd Kaufman’s original Toxic Avenger movie is the defining work of Troma Entertainment; the тιтular mutant vigilante is basically the Mickey Mouse of the Troma brand. The new Toxic Avenger reboot was written and directed by Macon Blair in his sophomore directorial effort after his acclaimed debut, I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore.
Dinklage plays the тιтular superhero parody, the Toxic Avenger himself, and he’s backed up by a star-studded supporting cast that includes Jacob Tremblay, Kevin Bacon, and Elijah Wood. The Toxic Avenger premiered as the opening movie of Fantastic Fest on September 21, 2023, and it was later screened at Beyond Fest and the 56th Sitges Film Festival. It was well-received by critics, scoring a near-perfect 92% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes. But almost two years later, the film still hasn’t gotten a wider release outside the festival circuit. Why is it taking so long to come out?
The Toxic Avenger Has Struggled To Find Distribution Due To Its Graphic Content
The Reboot Was Deemed “Unreleasable”
Although it received rave reviews when it made its festival debut, The Toxic Avenger struggled to secure a distributor. In July 2024, it was reported that the movie had been described as “unreleasable” due to its shockingly graphic content. No studio wanted to pick up the movie for release, because it was considered impossible to market. For a while, it seemed like The Toxic Avenger would become one of those legendary lost movies that eventually emerges as a bootleg years later.
The Toxic Avenger‘s Rotten Tomatoes consensus reads: “Like the original, The Toxic Avenger isn’t for everyone – but viewers seeking an extremely gory, extremely silly good time won’t be disappointed.“
However, after a long year-and-a-half struggle to find a distributor, The Toxic Avenger was finally picked up. In January 2025, Cineverse acquired the distribution rights to the movie. The company has since set a U.S. release date for August 29, 2025. So, this supposedly unreleasable film will make it to theaters after all. Cineverse is best known as the current distributor of the Terrifier franchise, so it’s the perfect company to release a horror movie notorious for its excessive gore.
The Reason Behind The Toxic Avenger’s Delay Makes It Even More Exciting
It Lends The Movie An Enticing Notoriety
The fact that The Toxic Avenger was initially deemed to be too gory and gruesome to be released could help it in the long run. It lends the movie a certain mythic notoriety that will attract a specific faction of horror fans. For cult horror audiences, movies like this are an endurance test. Reports of vomiting and fainting at screenings of Terrifier 3 turned it into one of the biggest box office surprises of 2024. The Toxic Avenger could repeat that success in 2025.
