A few years back, numerous rumors emerged involving a remake of Troma Films’ iconic character The Toxic Avenger (right, David Mattey in Toxic Avenger IV), which would have been a PG-13 remake with Steve Pink attached to have directed. Even more the outstanding was that Arnold Schwarzenegger was going to appear as a vigilante who would serve as a mentor to the heroic monster and then, nothing…until now.

It has been announced that after a few years of nothing, the remake, which is still going to be mainstream rather than follow its original lower-budget cult classic, is now fast-tracking as a director has been locked down. Sausage Party co-director Conrad Vernon (left) will be directing the new film with the script being re-written by Mike Arnold and Chris Poole, who are known for their work on the hit FX animated series Archer.

Vernon is thrilled to be directing a remake of a film he has loved during his high school days:

“The opportunity to re-imagine a favorite cult-classic from my high school years is an honor. Toxie is an underground icon. My favorite kind!”

The film will be produced by Richard Saperstein, Akiva Goldsman and Charlie Corwin with the character’s original creators, Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz of the famous Troma Team, serving as executive producers.

The original film, made in 1984, revolved around a 98-pound janitor who after being the victim of a prank jumps out the window and lands in a barrel of toxic waste and becomes a “hideous deformed superhero with superhuman size and strength”. The film spawned three sequels with a fourth apparently in the works as well as a early 90’s cartoon, The Toxic Crusaders as well as two comic book series.

More to come…

H/T: Bloody Disgusting