Finally, after days of build-up, Andy Serkis has confirmed that he’s directing Venom 2 – and The Lord of the Rings actor has provided some none-too-cryptic hints regarding the sequel’s story on Instagram.
THR broke the story, confirming that Serkis will indeed be behind the camera for Venom 2, which could potentially be released on October 2, 2020 to fill the spot left in Sony’s schedule by an ‘untitled Spider-Man movie.’
It’s been a long and protracted chase for Serkis, whose experience with motion-capture technology – with everything from Lord of the Rings to Planet of the Apes – will stand him in good stead for the CGI-heavy, erratic movements of Tom Hardy’s symbiotic Eddie Brock. This will be his third feature movie as director, having previously helmed Breathe back in 2017, and last year’s Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle for Netflix.
The director recently spoke to our sister publication SFX about his talks with Sony. At the time, he said: “Yes I've had meetings with Sony. So, that's potentially something that might happen. But we'll see....” Just days later, the news about Serkis stepping into the role of Venom 2 director was officially confirmed.
Serkis, himself, has taken to Instagram to share his reaction, writing: “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?”
Along with the caption is a picture of Serkis, interestingly, reading the final issue of the Venom comic arc Lethal Protector. That particular storyline saw Venom (eventually) team up with Spider-Man in San Francisco for a battle against five symbiote-ravaged villains.
A look at what’s to come, perhaps? Last year, the writer of Venom said: “Without revealing anything I’m not allowed to reveal, it is not impossible that in a future, upcoming Venom movie, Spider-Man will play a significant role.” Watch this space.
For now, the only concrete news we have is that Andy Serkis is directing Venom 2. With his legacy of lovingly-crafted, genre-defining CGI characters, that only bodes well for the success of Tom Hardy’s anti-hero in a sequel.
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