Paul Walter Hauser Reveals He Almost Played The Toxic Avenger

After a few decades in movie purgatory, The Toxic Avenger franchise is about to rise again, with a new film on the way from Universal Pictures. The reboot of the beloved cult classic already boasts a horrifying trailer and an all-star cast — and apparently, that almost included recent Emmy winner Paul Walter Hauser. While speaking to ComicBook.com about their roles in Netflix’s Orion and the Dark, Hauser and Jacob Tremblay spoke about Tremblay’s role in The Toxic Avenger. In the process, Hauser, whose work includes Black Bird and Cruella, revealed that he was one of multiple people in contention to play the titular character in The Toxic Avenger, if needed.

“I read the screenplay for it,” Hauser explained in our interview, which you can check out above. “I was like on a list of people, if Peter Dinklage gets COVID, I’ll jump [in]. I was one of 20 people or whatever. But the script is amazing. I love Macon [Blair], the writer-director, and the cast. Isn’t it like you and Elijah Wood and Kevin Bacon?”

“Yeah, it’s, it’s an insane cast,” Tremblay echoed. “I mean, that was such a fun movie. I mean, iit’s incredible. I think people are gonna have such a fun time watching that. It’s something else. I’m super excited for people to see it.”

“In the world where a lot of superhero movies start to feel kind of factory made, that looks like one that is from a singular mind and a really creative, kind of edgy space,” Hauser argued. ‘So I’m certainly excited to see it.”

What Is The Toxic Avenger Reboot About?

The Toxic Avenger is set in a fantasy world following Winston, a stereotypical weakling who works as a janitor at Garb-X health club and is diagnosed with a terminal illness that can only be cured by an expensive treatment that his greedy, power hungry employer refuses to pay for. After deciding to take matters into his own hands and rob his company, Winston falls into a pit of toxic waste and is transformed into a deformed monster that sets out to do good and get back at all the people who have wronged him.

The Toxic Avenger will star Peter Dinklage as Winston Gooze/The Toxic Avenger, Jacob Tremblay as Wade, Taylour Paige as J.J. Doherty, Kevin Bacon as Bob Garbinger, Sarah Niles as Mayor Togar, Julia Davis as Kissy Sturnevan, Julian Kostov as Budd Berserk, Elijah Wood as Fritz Garbinger, David Yow as Guthrie Stockins, and Macon Blair as Dennis.

What Is Orion and the Dark About?

In Orion and the Dark, Orion seems a lot like your average elementary school kid –– shy, unassuming, harboring a secret crush. But underneath his seemingly normal exterior, Orion is a ball of adolescent anxiety, completely consumed by irrational fears of bees, dogs, the ocean, cell phone waves, murderous gutter clowns, even falling off a cliff. But of all his fears, the thing he’s the most afraid of is what he confronts on a nightly basis: the dark. So when the literal embodiment of his worst fear pays a visit, Dark whisks Orion away on a roller coaster ride around the world to prove there is nothing to be afraid of in the night. As the unlikely pair grow closer, Orion must decide if he can learn to accept the unknown –– to stop letting fear control his life and finally embrace the joy of living.

Based on the children’s book of the same name from Emma Yarlett, Orion and the Dark is directed by Sean Charmatz, and written by Charlie Kaufman. The cast of Orion and the Dark also includes Colin Hanks, Angela Bassett, Natasia Demetriou, Nat Faxon, Ike Barinholtz, and Carla Gugino.

Would you have wanted to see Paul Walter Hauser play The Toxic Avenger? Share your thoughts with us in the comments below!

Orion and the Dark is now available to stream exclusively on Netflix.