Sony recently announced that the release of Venom: Let There Be Carnage is postponed once again and will now premiere on September 17, 2021. The superhero sequel was previously slated to open on the same weekend as Universal’s Fast and Furious 9.
Let There Be Carnage is the direct sequel to 2018’s Venom. The original was directed by Zombieland’s Ruben Fleischer and starred Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock/Venom, Michelle Williams as Anne Weying, and Riz Ahmed as Carlton Drake/Riot. Venom wasn’t well-received by critics -- it received a 29% Tomatometer score at Rotten Tomatoes. Following Venom's release, Fleischer stated that he was “bummed” that critics didn’t like it because it is intended to be a crowd-pleasing film. Despite earning negative reviews, the film was a box office hit, grossing over $850 million worldwide on a $100 million budget.
RELATED: Fan-Made Pokemon Card Combines Charizard and Venom
In 2019, actor-turned-filmmaker Andy Serkis was tapped to direct the sequel. Serkis is most notably known for playing Gollum in Peter Jackson’s Lord of the Rings trilogy and Klaw in Marvel Studios' Black Panther. Now, Venom: Lete There Be Carnage is the third film he has directed to date. Serkis previously made 2017’s Breathe and 2018’s Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle. Serkis has previously stated that he excited to be working on the sequel and while he isn't able to divulge any details on the project, he assured fans they will not be disappointed.
Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, and Reid Scott are reprising their roles from the original. Furthermore, actor Woody Harrelson will star as the titular villain, Cletus Kasady/Carnage. In the comics, Cletus Kasady was a deranged serial killer who was once a cellmate of Eddie Brock’s in prison. Carnage is more powerful than Venom and can turn his arms into weapons and launch deadly objects. After breaking out of prison, Carnage went on a killing rampage and attempted to take down Spider-Man. The super-villain was introduced in The Amazing Spider-Man #344 by writer David Michelinie and artist Erik Larsen. The mid-credits scene of Venom showed Harrelson’s Carnage being kept in a maximum-security cell in San Quentin Prison.
Serkis revealed that Hardy helped write the story for Venom 2 with British screenwriter Kelly Marcel (Fifty Shades of Grey & Saving Mr. Banks). Meanwhile, Barry Waldman, Jonathan Cavendish, Edward Cheng, Howard Chen, and Ruben Fleischer are the executive producers. Let There Be Carnage finished filming in 2020 and was originally slated to be released in IMAX and premium large formats last October.
Venom: Let There Be Carnage is scheduled to be released on September 17, 2021.
MORE: Attack On Titan: 5 Ways Eren Yeager Is Now The Villain (& 5 Ways He's Still A Hero)
Source: Deadline