Sony Pictures
When a low-budget Joker origin story from the guy who made The Hangover III was announced, it was initially considered a massive risk, especially due to the fact that it was coming from Warner Bros., who had already severely botched attempts at Justice League and Suicide Squad.
Miraculously, though, not only was Joker a record-breaking success (it became the first R-Rated movie to make over $1 billi), but it was a critical home run, as it’s likely to rack up Academy Award nominations in the coming months.
While Joker may have been the most successful R-Rated comic book movie, it certainly wasn’t the first, as Deadpool, Deadpool 2, and Logan laid the groundwork for the film to succeed. And now that it’s been proven that the R-Rated formula can work, expect to see other comic book flicks, such as Venom 2, shoot for that same goal.
Speaking to Cinemablend, Venom producer Matt Tomlach said that the success of Joker provided that R-Rated comic book films are certainly a viable option and hinted that making Venom 2 R-Rated is certainly something they’ll “think about”:
“I mean, I think you always have to think about [it], now that that works. Having said that, our movie worked really well. Our franchise exists as it is, and I don’t think anybody is looking to just say, ‘Hey, they [did it]!’ We have a place in the world. So it isn’t like suddenly everybody’s considering what to do with the rating. … I think what Joker does is it tells you that you can succeed. For a very long time, that was the narrative. And Deadpool sort of wrestled that to the turf, and then Logan, but for a long time, that was considered totally forbidden. … So you know, I think it’s the greatest thing in the world that R-rated movies are being embraced by massive audiences. And it just means that there are more opportunities for that kind of storytelling.” [via Cinemablend]
If I was a betting man (which I am, shout out to the Bears), I’d lean towards Venom 2 being rated R, especially since Spider-Man is not expected to be introduced fully in this one (although he’ll likely post up in a post-credit scene). The success of the original, PG-13 film was a miracle in and of itself, as the movie seemed as though it was unearthed out of a time capsule from the days of the Jessica Alba-starring Fantastic Four.
Nevertheless, the film made over $856 million at the global box office, which is about $200 million more than Justice League made. Astounding — a movie about a parasitic alien anti-hero made more money than a movie with Batman and Superman in it. Pathetic. Fucking Joss Whedon. #ReleaseTheSnyderCut. Anyway, I digress.
With the success of Joker (and Logan and Deadpool before it), the opportunity to hit Venom 2 with an R-Rating presents Sony with an unmissable opportunity, as there are few mainstream comic book characters out there that would benefit from an R-Rating more than Venom.
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Eric is a New York City-based writer who still isn’t quite sure how he’s allowed to have this much fun for a living and will tell anyone who listens that Gotham City is canonically in New Jersey. Follow him on Twitter @eric_ital for movie and soccer takes or contact him eric@brobible.com