Whether he’s racing through the sands in Mad Max: Fury Road or spending an hour and a half talking on the phone in Locke, Tom Hardy is one of the most beloved and versatile actors around. His dedication and enormous presence makes him someone to watch even when he isn’t in the best roles, as shown with his puzzling performance as Bane in Dark Knight Rises. With Hardy’s latest foray into superheroes, Venom, fast approaching, many still aren’t quite sure how to feel about the character’s first solo film.
Despite that skepticism, it appears Hardy has a great deal of confidence in the brand, announcing officially that he has signed up for three Venom movies. In a cover issue of Total Film (via CBM), Hardy discussed this announcement:
“I’m open to whatever you want to do with it. We’ve signed up for three of them. So it’s very much an open case. We’ll see what people’s responses are to it. I think it’s an awesome character. I love playing both of them. It’s an amuse-bouche, and for Sony, it’s the Venom-verse launched in isolation, as it were.”
Hardy’s commitment comes as a bit of a surprise considering his penchant for more acclaimed fare, but seeing an actor of his caliber committing long-term is promising. That’s assuming though that a Venom sequel will happen, as many fans and critics aren’t too confident in the film’s prospects. Early trailers have featured an odd tonal balance and some iffy CGI, and many are still unsure if the film will receive a PG-13 or R rating.
While I understand the skepticism, I still am fairly excited to see Venom. It’s impossible to trust Sony to deliver, but I do trust a cast that features several great actors in Michelle Williams, Riz Ahmed, and Hardy. My biggest hope with the film is that embraces more of a darker tone rather than following in the traditional MCU footsteps that favor more comedy.
Venom hits theaters October 5th, 2018.