What to expect from Peter Dinklage-Elijah Wood's 'The Toxic Avenger'
What's the story
Peter Dinklage and Elijah Wood recently made an appearance at the San Diego Comic-Con to promote their upcoming film, The Toxic Avenger Unrated. The movie is a reboot of the beloved superhero franchise that started in 1984. During the event, Dinklage spoke about his role as janitor Winston Gooze and voice of Toxie, the mutant vigilante he becomes after a freak accident.
Role acceptance
Dinklage was drawn to the role due to Kaufman's influence
Dinklage, 56, revealed that he was immediately drawn to the role of Toxie due to his admiration for filmmaker Lloyd Kaufman. Kaufman is the creator of the original Toxic Avenger film from 1984. "Environmental concerns are an ongoing thing, now more than ever," said the Game of Thrones star. "The great way to get into that is through satire, through the backdoor, through humor."
Character details
Wood plays Fritz Garbinger
Wood, 44, plays Fritz Garbinger in the new Toxic Avenger. His casting surprised fans when the film's trailer was released in September 2023. After premiering at Fantastic Fest that year, director Macon Blair's film faced delays due to distribution issues. Cineverse and Iconic Events Releasing will now release an "unrated" version of the movie on August 29.
Character insights
Tremblay also stars as Wade Gooze
When asked about his role as Garbinger, Wood said, "There's a beating heart in there." He added that he loves the horror genre for its possibilities. Tremblay, who plays Winston's son Wade, said he had to pretend not to love Dinklage during filming. Dinklage praised the cast as "top-notch," including his body double Luisa Guerreiro who plays Toxie in prosthetics.
Franchise history
Original film spawned sequels, animated TV show, and stage musical
The original 1984 Toxic Avenger film, starring Mark Torgl in the lead role, spawned three sequels, an animated children's TV show, a stage musical, a video game, and a Marvel comic. The latest reboot also stars Julia Davis and Jonny Coyne. It is set to hit theaters in August. San Diego Comic-Con 2025 is taking place from July 24-27.