Tom Hardy is keen to return to Venom 3, as he is ‘deeply invested’ in the character of Eddie Brock, but that depends on whether Venom 2 is a success. The first reviews are mixed.

If Venom: Let There Be Carnage does the numbers Sony hoped for this weekend, we can probably expect another sequel. After repeatedly pushing back the release date due to pandemics, the second Venom movie has finally been set for 1 October. That’s two weeks earlier than the previous release date, but it was initially scheduled to premiere in October 2020.

Tom Hardy was signed on to star in three Venom films from the start, so the paperwork is already in place should Sony still go ahead with Venom 3. Nothing is officially happening yet, but Hardy, for his part, hopes that a sequel will become official soon. Speaking about Venom: Let There Be Carnage in an interview with THR, Hardy had this to say about the future of the franchise after the second film, “I’m deeply involved in this particular franchise. If this one is successful, there will be another one”.

Venom director Andy Serkis also sees a bright future for the Venom series. The director believes it’s only a matter of time before Venom crosses paths with Spider-Man in an upcoming sequel, perhaps through a Marvel multiverse. Before that happens, however, Serkis would like to see other villains get more screen time in this universe, similar to how Woody Harrelson’s Cletus Kasady/Carnage will have a significant role in Venom 2.

“I know everyone is desperate for Venom to meet Spider-Man. I know,” Serkis told Screen Rant. “But I think there are real milestones in the other supervillains in Ravencroft. There’s such fertile ground there to explore. That would be a sandbox I’d love to play in. Who is hiding there that could break out?”

“I wouldn’t be doing the work if I wasn’t alert and open to every possibility or eventuality or excited about it,” Tom Hardy also said of a possible Spider crossover via Esquire. “Obviously, it’s a big chasm to jump over that one person alone can’t bridge, and it would take a much higher level of diplomacy and intelligence to sit down and talk about taking on an idea like this. If both sides were willing to do it and it would be mutually beneficial, I don’t see why it couldn’t be.”

Hardy added: “I’m also thinking about the third film because I think it should be written at the same time [as the second part]. The third one won’t get the green light until the second one is a success, but the studio was [very, very happy] with the second one”.

Sony should be pleased with Venom: Let There Be Carnage, but what matters most is the fan reception. Reviews have been a bit mixed so far, but that’s not a death blow for Venom 3, as the original Venom didn’t do well with critics either. On the other hand, Venom grossed over $856 million, and that was certainly enough to order the sequel. The state of the movie industry has changed dramatically since 2018, and Sony will likely keep this in mind when judging the success of Venom 2.

Source The Hollywood Reporter