Hot Toys

Thirteen years ago to the day, the world lost Peter Cushing. Best known for his roles in Hammer horror films and Star Wars, the actor has always been revered as one of England's favorites. It's been a long time since there's been a proper Grand Moff Tarkin action figure with a truly genuine Cushing likeness, but Hot Toys has finally managed to do justice to one of the Galactic Empire's most brilliant commanders.

Next year will be the 10th anniversary of the release of The Dark Knight, arguably one of the greatest superhero films ever made, and one of Christopher Nolan's most celebrated films. A lot of that is due to the performance of Heath Ledger as the Joker, which was sadly his last, but also one of his most iconic and memorable. His version of the Joker went from getting some of the most vitriol from fans in any casting announcement to becoming the version cosplayed and revered more than any other. In celebration of this anniversary, Hot Toys has announced an all-new quarter-scale version of its popular Joker figure, complete with a new portrait that honors the man behind the make-up.

On the heels of a sexy new trailer, Hot Toys has officially revealed the first few sixth-scale figures in the upcoming Thor: Ragnarok collection. A number of characters from recent Marvel Cinematic Universe properties were teased at San Diego Comic-Con, but Thor and Hulk are the two best frenemies that have the distinction of releasing first. The first glimpses at these toys had us excited, but getting a more up-close and personal look at both Gladiator Hulk and the Roadworn Thor only makes us wish Thor: Ragnarok was being injected into our eyeballs right this very second.

On the list of companies that garner the most attention and acclaim from toy collectors, you'll find Hot Toys very close to the top. The hyper-realistic offerings from the Hong Kong company do fetch a premium price, but there aren't a lot of competitors that are able to do mixed-media one-sixth scale figures quite like Hot Toys. As always, one of the highlights of San Diego Comic-Con is seeing all the prototypes for upcoming releases at Sideshow Collectibles' (the US distributor for Hot Toys) booth. With Thor: Ragnarok, Justice League, and Star Wars licenses under its belt, Hot Toys SDCC 2017 showings already have us painfully staring at our bank accounts.