Short answer: the Toxic movie releases in cinemas worldwide on 26 August 2026. That is the fourth date the film has carried, and the first one it is actually going to keep.
Four years of buzz, a budget nobody can agree on, a shoot that ran fourteen months and three postponements later, Yash’s first film since KGF: Chapter 2 is finally out. It is called Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-Ups, it is directed by Geetu Mohandas, it runs three hours and fourteen minutes, and the censor board has given it an ‘A’. None of that describes a KGF sequel, which is the point.
This is what is confirmed about the Toxic movie 2026 as of release week: the cast and who they play, the numbers that keep getting misquoted, the trailer, and where you can watch it. Anything still unannounced — the streaming date, chiefly — is marked as such rather than guessed at.
Contents
- What the Toxic movie is about
- Toxic movie release date: the full timeline
- Toxic movie cast: who plays whom
- Toxic movie 2026: budget, runtime and certificate
- Watch the official trailer
- Where to watch the Toxic movie
- Why the Toxic movie matters for Yash
- Questions people ask about the Toxic movie
What the Toxic movie is about
The Toxic movie is a period gangster drama set in post-independence Goa. It follows a gangster working out where his loyalties end and his conscience begins, and the legacy that lands on his son — both of them played by Yash, in the first dual role of his career.
That is a deliberate turn away from the template that made him. KGF was elevation and momentum; Yash has described Toxic instead as nuanced, built on moral ambiguity and the darker end of human behaviour. Geetu Mohandas, whose Liar’s Dice went to Sundance and was India’s Oscar entry, is not a director anyone hires to make a mass-action film.
Five things separate it from the rest of this year’s pan-India slate:
- A dual role. Yash plays Raya, the gangster, and Rumi — called “Ticket” — his son.
- Shot twice over, in Kannada and English. Not dubbed later; performed in both, which is close to unheard of at this budget.
- A woman directing an Indian tentpole. Still rare enough at this scale to be worth stating plainly.
- Hollywood action. J. J. Perry, of John Wick and Fast & Furious, ran a 45-day action schedule.
- VFX by DNEG, the eight-time Oscar-winning studio behind Dune: Part Two, reportedly including de-aging work.
Venkat K. Narayana and Yash produce, through KVN Productions and Monster Mind Creations.
Toxic movie release date: the full timeline
The toxic movie release date moved three times before it settled, which is most of the reason the question has been searched so relentlessly for two years.
| Date announced | What happened |
|---|---|
| 10 April 2025 | The original date, set before the shoot had finished |
| 19 March 2026 | Pushed back as production ran long |
| 4 June 2026 | Pushed again, with instability in the Middle East market cited |
| 26 August 2026 | Final worldwide theatrical release |
August 26 is not an arbitrary landing spot. It opens into a long festive corridor — Onam in Kerala, with Varamahalakshmi, Raksha Bandhan and Eid around it — which buys the film a longer run across several markets at once instead of one big opening weekend and a cliff.
So, directly: the Toxic movie releases on 26 August 2026, in theatres, worldwide.
Toxic movie cast: who plays whom
The Toxic movie cast pulls from four industries, plus a handful of international actors for the English version.
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Yash | Raya, and Rumi alias “Ticket” — the dual lead |
| Nayanthara | Ganga |
| Kiara Advani | Nadia |
| Huma Qureshi | Elizabeth |
| Tara Sutaria | Rebecca |
| Rukmini Vasanth | Mellisa |
| Balaji Manohar | Bheera |
| Sanjeeda Sheikh | Special appearance |
One correction worth making, because it still circulates: Tovino Thomas is not in the film. He was rumoured as the antagonist in July 2024 and said himself, later, that he was never part of it.
Behind the camera, Rajeev Ravi shoots and Ujwal Kulkarni edits. Ravi Basrur — the KGF composer — scores the film, with songs from Vishal Mishra, Tanishk Bagchi, Faheem Abdullah and Arslan Nizami alongside him. Yash shares the story credit with Geetu Mohandas.
Toxic movie 2026: budget, runtime and certificate
The numbers attached to the Toxic movie 2026 get repeated so often, and so loosely, that they are worth separating into what is certified and what is merely reported.
- Runtime: 194 minutes — 3 hours 14 minutes, from the censor certificate. One of the longest mainstream Indian releases in years.
- Certificate: ‘A’. Adults only, from the CBFC. Nobody under 18, and no attempt to soften the film for a family audience.
- Budget: reported, not confirmed. Published figures range from ₹500 crore to ₹1,000 crore. ₹700–800 crore is the band quoted most often. Either way it sits among the most expensive Indian films ever made, and no official figure has been released.
- Languages: shot in Kannada and English, dubbed for Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam.
- Shoot: August 2024 to October 2025, across Bengaluru, Mumbai, Goa, Thoothukudi and Jaipur.
Read those first two together and the positioning is obvious. A 194-minute ‘A’-certificate gangster picture is not chasing the four-quadrant audience KGF: Chapter 2 had. It is asking for a different kind of attention, and betting ₹700-odd crore that enough people will give it.
Watch the official trailer
The trailer was unveiled on 8 August 2026 at an event in Bengaluru, and it is the clearest look yet at what Yash has actually done with the two roles.
Two things stood out in the reaction to it: how dark the tone is for a film of this budget, and how much the cut withholds. For a three-hour picture, the trailer gives away remarkably little plot.
Where to watch the Toxic movie
In cinemas, from 26 August 2026 — that is the only way to watch the Toxic movie for now. It is a wide theatrical release across Indian multiplex and single-screen chains and international markets, with distribution split by region.
| Territory | Distributor | Reported rights value |
|---|---|---|
| Andhra Pradesh & Telangana | Sri Venkateswara Film Distributors | ₹120 crore |
| Overseas (Indian languages) | Phars Film | ₹105 crore |
| Tamil Nadu | Think Studios, S Picture, Trident Arts, Five Star Senthil | ₹63 crore |
| North India & Nepal | AA Films | — |
| Kerala | Panorama Studios | — |
| Karnataka | KVN Productions & Monster Mind Creations (self-distributed) | — |
| International, English version | Lionsgate | — |
Tickets are on the usual platforms — BookMyShow, Paytm Movies and the chains’ own apps. The English version is Lionsgate’s, which is what makes this a genuinely international release rather than a diaspora one.
On streaming: nothing is confirmed. No OTT platform, no digital date, no announcement. Films of this size typically reach streaming six to eight weeks after opening, but that is an industry pattern, not a commitment anyone has made about this one. Treat any date you see circulating as unverified until a platform says so itself.
If you are waiting for the stream rather than booking a ticket, our list of the best Netflix series to watch in Hindi covers the same appetite in the meantime, and the rest of our culture coverage is here.
Why the Toxic movie matters for Yash
Four years is a long gap for an actor at the peak of his reach, and Yash has spent all of it on one film. The Toxic movie is the test of whether the audience that turned up for KGF: Chapter 2 was there for Rocky Bhai or for him.
It is also a test of something larger, and the industry knows it. A festival director, an original screenplay, an adult certificate and a ₹700-crore-plus budget is a combination Indian cinema does not usually attempt. If it works, it widens what a producer will greenlight. If it does not, it becomes the example cited in the room the next time somebody proposes handing a tentpole to an auteur.
Yash does not have to wait long to find out, and he does not have to sit still either. He is back this Diwali as Ravana in Ramayana, opposite Ranbir Kapoor — with DNEG, again, handling the visual effects.
Questions people ask about the Toxic movie
When is the Toxic movie release date?
26 August 2026, in theatres worldwide. It was rescheduled three times before this date — from April 2025, then March 2026, then June 2026.
Who is the lead actor in the Toxic movie?
Yash, in a dual role — Raya, a gangster, and Rumi, known as “Ticket”, his son. It is the first dual role of his career.
Who directed the Toxic movie?
Geetu Mohandas, whose earlier features are Liar’s Dice and Moothon. She co-wrote the story with Yash.
What is the Toxic movie’s runtime?
194 minutes — 3 hours and 14 minutes — as certified.
What certificate has the Toxic movie received?
An ‘A’ from the CBFC — adults only. Do not plan it as a family outing.
What languages is the Toxic movie releasing in?
Kannada and English, both shot rather than dubbed, plus dubbed versions in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam.
What is the Toxic movie’s budget?
No official figure exists. Reported estimates run from ₹500 crore to ₹1,000 crore, with ₹700–800 crore the range quoted most often — which would place it among the most expensive Indian films ever made.
Is the Toxic movie based on a true story?
No. It is an original period gangster drama set in post-independence Goa, written for the screen.
Will the Toxic movie release on OTT?
Eventually, but no platform or date has been announced. Films of this scale usually arrive on streaming six to eight weeks after release; that is a pattern, not a promise.
Who else is in the Toxic movie cast besides Yash?
Nayanthara, Kiara Advani, Huma Qureshi, Tara Sutaria and Rukmini Vasanth, with Akshay Oberoi, Sudev Nair, Balaji Manohar and Darrell D’Silva in support and Sanjeeda Sheikh in a special appearance.
Is Tovino Thomas in the Toxic movie?
No. He was rumoured to be playing the antagonist in mid-2024 and has since said he was never cast.
Where was the Toxic movie shot?
Bengaluru, Mumbai, Goa, Thoothukudi and Jaipur, between August 2024 and October 2025.
The full production and release record, including the distribution deals, is set out on the film’s Wikipedia entry, and the official trailer is on YouTube.
