Love or hate the franchise, there's no denying that Sony Pictures’ Venom trilogy has found more than its fair share of success in theaters.
While the movies never received much love from critics (each instalment also made less than its predecessor at the box office), the Lethal Protector grossed over $1.8 billion combined across three Spider-Man-less solo outings. That's not a character likely to be left on the shelf for long.
There had been some talk of Venom 4 evolving into an Agent Venom movie, but after Kraven the Hunter bombed, the studio put all its live-action Marvel adaptations on hold. Now, though, Eddie Brock is on his way back to the big screen in an animated Venom feature.
The Hollywood Reporter (via ComicBookMovie.com) has confirmed that Zach Lipovsky and Adam B. Stein, the filmmakers behind 2025 horror hit Final Destination: Bloodlines, are on board to direct and produce the project. Amy Pascal, Avi Arad, and Matt Tolmach will also likely produce, though the extent of their involvement isn’t clear.
Here’s where things get really interesting: Venom star Tom Hardy is "understood to be involved in some capacity as well." However, "It is unclear whether he would produce or even return to voice Venom as well."
If Hardy does reprise the role, then this movie may be set in the same world as his previous appearances as Eddie. Still, the trade cautions that, while this animated take on Venom is officially happening, it’s still early days and likely years away due to the lengthy animation process. Lipovsky and Stein are also busy developing a new Gremlins movie.
It's been widely reported that Marvel Studios has its own plans for the Venom Symbiote, with Mac Gargan/The Scorpion eventually becoming the MCU's Venom (something there's a precedent for in the comics). As much fun as it would be to see the Spider-Man franchise's take on Eddie after Brand New Day, it's not overly likely.
"We got close. We got as close as I could possibly imagine getting, apart from doing a film together, which I would have loved to have done because that just means so much fun," Hardy said last week of Venom never getting to share the screen with Spider-Man.
"Fundamentally, for me, it would be for the kids. Because, you know, as much as adults love superhero films, as you can tell by the box office when they’re successful, I think I’m constantly reminded by children how important these characters are," he continued. "And they don’t know why their favorite characters aren’t in films together."
"We were given a set of boundaries, and we were just really privileged to be able to play with a much-beloved IP like Venom in a way that we were allowed to play. And in that [regard], we did what we could and what we loved doing."
"We poured all of ourselves into it within the remits of what we were allowed to do with him. And so the enjoyment of the work outweighed the limits of our possibilities with him because we just focused on what we were allowed to do. And we loved doing it," Hardy concluded.
Are you excited for this animated Venom movie?