EXCLUSIVE: Peter Dinklage continues to build a strong film slate in his post Game of Thrones career and looks to have found his next big project. He is set to star in Legendary’s new Toxic Avenger movie. Macon Blair is on board to direct.
A contemporary reimagining of Troma Entertainment’s successful 1984 low-budget action comedy hit, The Toxic Avenger is steeped in environmental themes and subverts the superhero genre in the vein of Deadpool. When a struggling everyman is pushed into a vat of toxic waste, he is transformed into a mutant freak who must go from shunned outcast to underdog hero as he races to save his son, his friends and his community from the forces of corruption and greed. Troma’s Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz will serve as producers.
The Toxic Avenger became successful after a long run as a midnight movie in New York City, leading to sequels The Toxic Avenger Part II, The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie, and Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV. The property also became a stage musical production, a children’s cartoon TV series and a Marvel comic.
Dinklage has done a good job balancing the fun tentpole pics with prestige dramas in recent years even as he continued to rack up Emmys for his iconic role as Tyrion Lannister on GoT. Some of his recent film credits include Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War, X-Men: Days of Future Past, My Dinner With Herve and the thriller I Care Alot, which premiered at this year’s Toronto Film Festival with Netflix landing distribution rights.
He is repped by CAA and Jackoway Austen.
Blair made his directorial debut with the acclaimed Netflix release I Don’t Feel at Home in This World Anymore, starring Melanie Lynskey and Elijah Wood. The film won the Grand Jury prize at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. He was an executive producer on and starred in Jeremy Saulnier’s 2013 film Blue Ruin.