Sony decided to break some exciting and shocking news when they announced that acclaimed actor Tom Hardy has been cast as the new Eddie Brock aka Venom. Fans will remember that this isn't the first time we will get a live action Venom, as the character was featured in Spider-Man 3 but didn't feel true to his comic book self. Not only did the studio announce that such a big name and proven actor would be playing the title role, but they also announced that Zombieland director Ruben Fleischer is in final negotiations to helm the project which is set for a late 2018 release.
While Sony has been talking about making a solo Venom movie since back when The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was in production, not much had been heard about the project. Well this news has certainly made it clear that the studio is taking the project seriously, and has made it a priority to bring on big names and get the movies in theaters sooner rather later. There had been no rumored shortlists for Eddie Brock or the directing gig, so the news came as a shock to just about everyone that has been following this project.
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Sadly for fans who were hoping to see Tom Holland's Spider-Man square off against Hardy's Venom, this film will reportedly not be taking place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and will instead be a start of Sony's own new universe. The studio is going for an R-rating in the vein of Fox's Logan and Deadpool, which will allow them to go much darker and violent which suits both the character and actor playing him. But this tone unfortunately doesn't fit in well with Disney's much lighter take on Spider-Man, which is most likely why the studio elected to keep the two separate. It'll be interesting to see who Venom's enemy will be and how they'll change his origins considering the absence of Spider-Man.
Hardy's casting is sure to get many skeptics of the project excited, as the actor has projects such as The Revenant, Inception, Warrior, Mad Max: Fury Road, and The Dark Knight Rises under his belt. He has proven he can play darker complex and badass characters very well, which is a perfect fit for Venom. We can surely expect something very different from Topher Grace's Eddie Brock is Spider-Man 3, who was more of a jealous immoral version of Peter Parker. Director Ruben Fleischer on the other hand is certainly less proven, with his second film Gangster Squad falling very far from the success he had with Zombieland. We can only hope he's able to recapture that R-rated magic with this project.
So how do you feel about Tom Hardy playing Venom? Are you disappointed he won't be a part of the MCU? Let us know below!
