We’ve been hearing rumblings of a reboot of the Attack of the Killer Tomatoes franchise for a long time. Seventeen years, in fact. That’s when it was announced that the duo behind the internet web series Ask a Ninja would be writing a remake. That didn’t pan out, but six years ago, filmmaker Dustin Ferguson said he was about to film the first attack scene for a Killer Tomatoes reboot. Then we never heard another thing about it. Now, Deadline has announced that a new entry in the franchise, titled Attack of the Killer Tomatoes: Organic Intelligence, is set to receive a limited theatrical release this , courtesy of Anchor Bay Entertainment – and we don’t have to worry about this project falling apart, because it has already wrapped production!

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes: Organic Intelligence is being referred to as a reboot simply because it’s the first Killer Tomatoes movie to come along in more than thirty years, but the cast list makes it clear that this is actually a sequel to the existing films. Released in 1978, Attack of the Killer Tomatoes was followed by Return of the Killer Tomatoes! in 1988, Killer Tomatoes Strike Back! in 1991, and Killer Tomatoes Eat France! in 1992. The sequels (and the animated series, which ran for two seasons, from 1990 to 1991) brought in John Astin as the villainous Professor Mortimer Gangreen (a.k.a. Dr. Putrid T. Gangreen), and Astin reprises the role in the new film!

Directed by David Ferino (Nocturnally Yours) from a screenplay by former franchise star J. Stephen Peace and Costa Dillon, who crafted the story for the original film and returned to co-write all of the sequels, Attack of the Killer Tomatoes: Organic Intelligence is said to pit the eternal power of nature against AI’s best and brightest.

Astin is joined in the cast by Dan Bakkedahl (Veep) as Wilbur Finletter, a character played by J. Stephen Peace in the previous films; David Koechner (Anchorman) as the U.S. president’s Press Secretary, Daniel Roebuck (The Munsters) as the admiral burdened by 50 years of burying the truth, Catherine Corcoran (Terrifier) as the rampage’s first victim, Paul Bates (Coming to America) as a loopy “disguise expert,” Samantha Bailey (The Listening) as Kate Patel, “genius” CEO of VegIntel and inventor of “MyTomato” – the “O.I.” solution to all the fears that AI can’t fix; Joshua Poon (Bad Boys), who ensures that the world experiences every slimy moment as The Influencer; and Vernee Watson (The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air) as a tech specialist whose down-home instincts anchor the team of “Tomato Guardians,” along with Runaway Train Oscar nominee Eric Roberts, Myrna Velasca (Star Wars: Resistance) and Noor Razooky (The Old Man). Also in the the cast is Zachary Roozen (Romeo and Juliet Killers), who plays Chad Finletter, a character first portrayed by Anthony Starke in Return of the Killer Tomatoes.

W. Finletter Films and Killer Tomatoes Entertainment partnered with Atomic Toybox Entertainment (Michael Polis) and IVC/Olas Media (Chad Peace, Juan Hernandez, and Anthony Aslofi) to oversee the production of Attack of the Killer Tomatoes: Organic Intelligence, with Polis and Roger M. Mayer producing. J. Stephen Peace and Costa Dillon served as executive producers.

“This time, they’re not just back. They’re organically intelligent,” said Dillon. “We are just going to keep trying until we get it right,” added Peace. “This is nuts,” quipped Ferino. “I have to work with these guys.“

Thomas Zembeck, CEO of Anchor Bay, added: “We’re proud to be bringing back a franchise with this much cultural DNA. Organic Intelligence is fresh, funny, weird, and self-aware — just the kind of beautifully chaotic project that fits our mission. Killer Tomatoes are ripe for reinvention.“

As far as I’m concerned, the thirty years that went by without Killer Tomatoes movies were years wasted, so I’m very glad to hear that Attack of the Killer Tomatoes: Organic Intelligence has made it through production and the Killer Tomatoes franchise is coming back with a movie from the same creative team (minus director John De Bello) as the previous films.

Are you looking forward to Attack of the Killer Tomatoes: Organic Intelligence? Share your thoughts on this one by leaving a comment below.