Watch The Toxic Avenger in release order: The Toxic Avenger (1984), The Toxic Avenger Part II and Part III (both 1989), then Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (2000), which jokingly ignores Parts II and III. The Toxic Avenger (2023) with Peter Dinklage is a standalone remake that reached theaters on August 29, 2025. Toxic Crusaders (1991) is a cartoon version made for kids.
- Titles
- 6
- Films
- 5
- Series
- 1
- Watch time
- 15 hours
- Box office
- $5 million
- Avg IMDb
- 5.6
Toxic Avenger movies in release order
Here is every Toxic Avenger title in the order it came out, 1984 to 2023: 5 films and 1 series. Optional entries are marked; you can skip them on a first watch.
| # | Title | Year | Type | Runtime | IMDb |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Toxic Avenger | 1984 | Film | 1h 50m | 6.2 |
| 2 | The Toxic Avenger Part II | 1989 | Film | 1h 35m | 5 |
| 3 | The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie | 1989 | Film | 1h 42m | 4.4 |
| 4 | Toxic Crusaders optional | 1991 | Series | 6h 30m | 6.5 |
| 5 | Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV | 2000 | Film | 1h 49m | 5.8 |
| 6 | The Toxic Avenger | 2023 | Film | 1h 42m | 5.8 |
Release or chronological: which order is best?
For The Toxic Avenger, release order and story order are the same thing: every film picks up after the one before it. There is no prequel to slot in early and no flashback to reshuffle, so the list above is the only order you need.
Where to start
Start with The Toxic Avenger and go in release order, skipping the 1 optional titles on the first pass.
The essentials are 5 titles and about 9 hours, 43% less than the full run.
The three highest rated: Toxic Crusaders (6.5), The Toxic Avenger (6.2), and Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (5.8).
Every Toxic Avenger movie, explained
One entry per title in release order: what it is about, why it matters to the bigger story, who is in it and how it did.
No. 01 · 1984 · Film · 1h 50m
The Toxic Avenger
A gang of thugs devise a cruel hoax that goes horribly wrong as Melvin, a nerdy emaciated janitor at the local health club, is cast through a third story window into a vat of hazardous toxic waste.
Why it matters: Melvin falls into toxic waste and becomes Toxie; Troma's calling card and the place to start.
- Starring
- Andree Maranda, Mitch Cohen, and Jennifer Prichard
- Director
- Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz
- Box office
- $1 million
- Scores
- IMDb 6.2 · Rotten Tomatoes 73%
No. 02 · 1989 · Film · 1h 35m
The Toxic Avenger Part II
Melvin Junko was a nerdy weakling until he fell into a vat of toxic waste, turning him into the first ever superhuman creature from New Jersey. This time, he takes on Tokyo.
Why it matters: Toxie goes to Tokyo to find his father; shot back to back with Part III.
- Starring
- Ron Fazio, John Altamura, and Phoebe Legere
- Director
- Michael Herz and Lloyd Kaufman
- Box office
- $1 million on a $3 million budget
- Scores
- IMDb 5 · Rotten Tomatoes 0%
No. 03 · 1989 · Film · 1h 42m
The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie
Desperate to raise money for the experimental surgery that could restore his blind fiancee's eyesight, Toxie accepts a lucrative job with the evil multinational conglomerate Apocalypse Inc.
Why it matters: Broke and bored, Toxie goes to work for Apocalypse Inc., whose chairman turns out to be the Devil.
- Starring
- Ron Fazio, John Altamura, and Phoebe Legere
- Director
- Michael Herz and Lloyd Kaufman
- Box office
- $0 million
- Scores
- IMDb 4.4
No. 04 · 1991 · Series · 6h 30m · optional
Toxic Crusaders
Loosely based on the 1984 B-horror comedy film The Toxic Avenger, Toxic Crusaders is a syndicated 13-episode animated series created by Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz. Like the source material, Toxie is a grotesque mutant endowed with superhuman powers, but is still a good-hearted and law-abiding citizen of the fictional town of Tromaville, New Jersey; the setting of most of Troma Entertainment's films. In a change from the films, the toxic waste mutated his mop into a sentient entity that sometimes battles enemies by itself or gives him ideas on how to solve problems. The villains include Czar Zosta, Dr. Killemoff, and Psycho, polluters from the planet Smogula who wreak ecological havoc with help from Tromaville's corrupt mayor, Grody. Bonehead, a street punk who bullied Melvin, joins them in the first episode.
Why it matters: A kids' cartoon version with a team of mutant heroes; a curiosity, not part of the films.
- Starring
- Rodger Bumpass, Gregg Berger, and Susan Silo
- Creator
- Lloyd Kaufman and Michael Herz
- Scores
- IMDb 6.5
- Episodes
- 13
No. 05 · 2000 · Film · 1h 49m
Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV
A horrific explosion creates a dimensional portal between Tromaville and its dimensional mirror image, Amortville. While the Toxie is trapped in the mirror dimension, Tromaville comes under the control of his evil doppelganger, the Noxious Offender.
Why it matters: The fourth film, which declares Parts II and III never happened; the most extreme of the four.
- Starring
- David Mattey, Debbie Rochon, and Clyde Lewis
- Director
- Lloyd Kaufman
- Scores
- IMDb 5.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 64%
No. 06 · 2023 · Film · 1h 42m
The Toxic Avenger
When a downtrodden janitor, Winston Gooze, is exposed to a catastrophic toxic accident, he’s transformed into a new kind of hero: The Toxic Avenger. Now, Toxie must rise from outcast to savior, taking on ruthless corporate overlords and corrupt forces who threaten his son, his friends, and his community.
Why it matters: A bigger-budget remake with Peter Dinklage as Winston Gooze; needs nothing before it.
- Starring
- Peter Dinklage, Jacob Tremblay, and Taylour Paige
- Director
- Macon Blair
- Box office
- $3 million
- Scores
- IMDb 5.8 · Rotten Tomatoes 86%
Toxic Avenger box office and budgets
The 4 Toxic Avenger films with reported numbers have grossed $5 million worldwide on about $3 million in combined budgets, roughly 0.3 times what they cost. The biggest is The Toxic Avenger at $3 million, 63% of the franchise's total on its own, followed by The Toxic Avenger ($1 million) and The Toxic Avenger Part II ($1 million).
The best and worst rated Toxic Avenger movies
Across 6 rated titles, The Toxic Avenger averages 5.6 on IMDb. The top of the list is Toxic Crusaders at 6.5, then The Toxic Avenger (6.2) and Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (5.8). At the bottom: The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (4.4) and The Toxic Avenger Part II (5). Money and quality don't line up perfectly: the highest grosser, The Toxic Avenger, is only the 4th best rated.
- Toxic Crusaders6.5
- The Toxic Avenger6.2 · RT 73%
- Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV5.8 · RT 64%
- The Toxic Avenger5.8 · RT 86%
- The Toxic Avenger Part II5 · RT 0%
- The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie4.4
Who appears in the most Toxic Avenger movies
Dan Snow leads with 2 appearances as Cigar Face and Sgt. Kazinski, ahead of Ron Fazio (2) and John Altamura (2). Counted from each title's top-billed cast.
| Actor | Role | Titles | First and latest |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Snow | Cigar Face / Sgt. Kazinski | 2 | The Toxic Avenger (1984) to Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (2000) |
| Ron Fazio | The Toxic Avenger (voice) / Apocalypse Inc. Executive | 2 | The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989) to The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989) |
| John Altamura | The Toxic Avenger | 2 | The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989) to The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989) |
| Phoebe Legere | Claire | 2 | The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989) to The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989) |
| Rick Collins | Apocalypse Inc. Chairman / Apocalypse, Inc. Chairman | 2 | The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989) to The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989) |
| Tsutomu Sekine | Announcer | 2 | The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989) to The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989) |
| Lisa Gaye | Malfaire | 2 | The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989) to The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989) |
| Jessica Dublin | Mrs. Junko | 2 | The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989) to The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989) |
| Joe Fleishaker | Apocalypse, Inc. Executive / Chester | 2 | The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989) to Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (2000) |
Toxic Avenger directors and creators
3 filmmakers have directed or created The Toxic Avenger; Lloyd Kaufman has the most, with 5.
- Lloyd KaufmanThe Toxic Avenger (1984), The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989), The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989), Toxic Crusaders (1991), and Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (2000)
- Michael HerzThe Toxic Avenger (1984), The Toxic Avenger Part II (1989), The Toxic Avenger Part III: The Last Temptation of Toxie (1989), and Toxic Crusaders (1991)
- Macon BlairThe Toxic Avenger (2023)
How long it takes to watch every Toxic Avenger movie
All 6 titles add up to 15 hours: 9 hours of film and 7 hours of series, counting every episode. That is about 8 two-hour evenings, or 2 days of ten-hour binges. The essentials cut it to 9 hours. The longest film is The Toxic Avenger at 1h 50m.
The 4 best rated films: The Toxic Avenger, Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV, The Toxic Avenger, and The Toxic Avenger Part II.
Everything takes about 3 weeks; the essentials about 9 days.
Track what you've watched on the timeline and it counts the hours left.
Which Toxic Avenger movies can you skip?
1 title can go without losing the main story. They are side stories, spin-offs or entries the later films ignore. Dropping them saves 7 hours.
- Toxic Crusaders1991 · Series · 6h 30m · optionalA kids' cartoon version with a team of mutant heroes; a curiosity, not part of the films.
Common questions
What order should I watch the Toxic Avenger movies in?
Watch The Toxic Avenger in release order: The Toxic Avenger (1984), The Toxic Avenger Part II and Part III (both 1989), then Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV (2000), which jokingly ignores Parts II and III. The Toxic Avenger (2023) with Peter Dinklage is a standalone remake that reached theaters on August 29, 2025. Toxic Crusaders (1991) is a cartoon version made for kids.
How many Toxic Avenger movies and shows are there?
There are 6 titles in the The Toxic Avenger franchise: 5 films and 1 series, released from 1984 to 2023.
How long does it take to watch all the Toxic Avenger movies?
About 15 hours for all 6 titles, counting every episode. The essentials only (5 titles) take about 9 hours.
What is the first Toxic Avenger title in chronological order?
The Toxic Avenger, set in Tromaville, New Jersey. In release order the first is The Toxic Avenger (1984).
Which Toxic Avenger titles can I skip?
Toxic Crusaders. They are spin-offs, side stories or non-canon entries; the main story holds without them.
What is the best Toxic Avenger movie?
By IMDb score, Toxic Crusaders (1991) at 6.5, followed by The Toxic Avenger at 6.2.
What is the highest-grossing Toxic Avenger movie?
The Toxic Avenger (2023), with $3 million worldwide. The Toxic Avenger films have made $5 million in total.
Who has appeared in the most Toxic Avenger movies?
Dan Snow, in 2 of them as Cigar Face.
What is the longest Toxic Avenger movie?
The Toxic Avenger, at 1h 50m.
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