If Venom: Let There Be Carnage pulls in the numbers that Sony’s hoping for this weekend, we can probably count on getting another sequel. After its release date had been shifted around multiple times because of the pandemic, the second Venom movie had finally been set to be released on Oct. 1. This brought it up two weeks earlier than its previous release date, though it was initially set to premiere in October 2020.
From the start, Tom Hardy had been signed on to appear in three Venom movies, so the paperwork is already in place should Sony move forward with Venom 3. Nothing is officially in motion at this time, but for his part, Hardy is hoping that the sequel is soon made official. Speaking about Venom: Let There Be Carnage in a recent interview with THR, here’s what Hardy had to say about the future of the franchise after the second movie.
“I’m deeply invested in this particular franchise. If it’s successful, there is another one to do.”
Andy Serkis, the director of Venom: Let There Be Carnage, also sees a bright future for the Venom series. The filmmaker believes that it’s just a matter of time before Venom crosses over with Spider-Man, perhaps by way of a Marvel multiverse, in an upcoming sequel. Before that happens, however, Serkis would prefer to see other villains in this universe to get more time to shine, similar to how Woody Harrelson’s Cletus Kasady/Carnage is so heavily featured in Venom 2.
“I know everyone is desperate for Venom to meet Spider-Man. I know that,” Serkis told Screen Rant. “But I think there’s real mileage in some of the other supervillains that reside in Ravencroft. There’s such fertile ground to be uncovered there. That would be the sandbox I’d be really interested in playing. Who’s lurking in there that could break out?”
“I wouldn’t be doing the job if I wasn’t awake and open to any opportunity or eventuality or be excited by that,” Tom Hardy also said of a potential Spidey crossover, via Esquire. “Obviously, that’s a large canyon to leap, to be bridged by one person alone, and it would take a much higher level of diplomacy and intelligence, sitting down and talking, to take on an arena such as that. Should both sides be willing, and it be beneficial to both sides, I don’t see why it couldn’t be.”
Hardy also said, “I’m thinking about the third movie as well, because I think you need to write that at the same time [as you’re working on part two]. A third won’t be greenlit until the second is successful, but the studio [was] really, really pleased with number two.”
Sony might be happy with Venom: Let There Be Carnage, but what matters most is the fan reception. The reviews have been a bit mixed so far, but that’s not a death blow for Venom 3, as the original Venom hadn’t fared well weith critics, either. What Venom did do was bank over $856 million at the box office, and that was certainly enough to get the sequel ordered. The state of the movie theater industry has changed dramatically since 2018, and Sony will likely keep this in mind when judging the success of Venom 2.
Venom: Let There Be Carnage is now showing in theaters. This news comes to us from The Hollywood Reporter.