Legendary's Toxic Avenger movie reboot has added Taylour Paige to its growing cast.
According to Deadline, Paige will star opposite Peter Dinklage and Jacob Tremblay in the re-imagining of the 1984 cult classic. Her past credits include Ma Rainey's Black Bottom, which earned her an NAACP Image Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her turn as Ma Rainey's girlfriend Dussie Mae. Up next, Paige will play the titular character in director Janicza Bravo's Zola, a biographical dramedy that earned critical acclaim following its world premiere at the 2020 Sundance Film Festival.
1984's The Toxic Avenger was released by Trom Entertainment, a production company infamous for making low-budget B-movies with an emphasis on splatter horror, camp and farce. The film centered on Melvin Ferd, a janitor who's frequently tormented by the customers at the health club where he works, only to gain super-powers after falling into a pile of toxic sludge. The Toxic Avenger went on to become a cult hit after playing on New York City's midnight movie circuit, spawning four sequels, a TV show, a stage musical, a video game, a Marvel comic book and even an animated children's TV series spinoff titled Toxic Crusaders.
The Toxic Avenger reboot was announced after Legendary landed the rights to the property in Dec. 2018, with Macon Blair coming aboard as the film's writer and director just a few months later. Lloyd Kaufman, who co-directed the 1984 Toxic Avenger movie, commented on Blair's script in early 2021, saying "It’s better than the original. Macon Blair knows Troma better than I do. He’s seen everything. He’s seen the cartoon, he’s seen the Halloween special... And he loves our movies like Troma’s War and Terror Firmer... He knows the Troma sense of humor, the combination of slapstick and satire with the environmental theme."
Kaufman will co-produce The Toxic Avenger reboot with Michael Herz, who co-helmed the original film with him. That said, Kaufman said he plans to stay hands-off with this new version, explaining "I learned on the [Toxic Avenger stage] musical to leave the creative to the creative. I learned to let them ask so if they want me, I’m there."
Directed by Macon Blair, The Toxic Avenger stars Peter Dinklage, Jacob Tremblay and Taylour Paige. The film has yet to receive a release date.
Source: Deadline