Sony/Getty
Despite the disjointed nature of the plot and lukewarm critical reception, Sony’s Tom Hardy-starring tentpole Venom still made over $856 million at the global box office, more than warranting a sequel. And now, that sequel has a director that should make fans legitimately excited about the prospect of a second movie.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Andy Serkis — having previously directed Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle — has signed on to direct the sequel to Venom for Sony.
Kelly Marcel wrote the script for Venom 2. Ruben Fleischer helmed 2018’s Venom, which starred Michelle Williams and featured a last-minute cameo by Woody Harrelson as chief Venom villain Cletus Kasady, aka Carnage. Serkis previously worked with Harrelson on 2017’s War for the Planet of the Apes. Sony had no comment. [The Hollywood Reporter]
Serkis has built a career around motion capture work, having starred as Gollum in The Lord of the Rings film trilogy, Caesar in the Planet of the Apes reboot trilogy, and Supreme Leader Snoke in the modern Star Wars trilogy. Serkis also has experience in the comic book movie world, having starred as Ulysses Klaue in both Avengers: Age of Ultron and Black Panther.
Following his official announcement as director, Serkis took to Instagram to confirm the news by posting a bright red photo of himself reading a Vemon comic with the caption “It’s actually happening. I can feel it, the Symbiote has found a host in me, and I’m ready for the ride…Can’t wait! Are you ready @tomhardy?”
And fans of the Spidey anti-hero think the comic book Serkis used in his Instagram post was no random selection, either.
Eagle-eyed fans on the internet have pointed out that the particular comic Serkis features in his post is the Lethal Protector arc, which sees Venom team up with none other than the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man “in San Francisco for a battle against five symbiote-ravaged villains”, according to Games Radar.
While it’s unlikely that Spider-Man will feature in the main plot of Venom 2 (which will likely, and hopefully, focus on Woody Harrelson’s Cletus Kasady / Carnage), he can certainly be teased in a post-credits scene, as everyone knows it’s only a matter of time before Sony and Marvel Studios iron out a deal to make this crossover happen.