Venom: Let There Be Carnage opens in movie theaters worldwide on October 15th, and fans are buzzing to see Tom Hardy reprise the role of one of Marvel Comics' most complex characters. The franchise's director, Andy Serkis, is hot on the promotional campaign for the upcoming release, most recently getting fans pumped for the new movie by speculating about Venom's potential future in the MCU.
Speaking exclusively to IGN, Serkis addressed what he said was "the question on everyone's lips," of when Tom Hardy's character would meet Tom Holland's MCU version of Spider-Man. "Of course, it's going to happen," Serkis revealed, although he added that it may be a while before the universes of the two iconic Marvel figures collide. He said, "The question is when. We don't want to rush it."
Now, fans of the comic books are reacting to Serkis's comments with a mix of excitement and confusion. One Twitter user was open to the possibility of Venom and Spider-Man joining forces, writing, "It would be interesting, because as it stands right now they have NO connection as characters, I wonder what they'd pull". While another was less hopeful, tweeting, "Yeah but with no previous ties to Spider-Man or Peter Parker there isn't an interesting conflict so maybe don't even bother".
In the original Marvel Comics, Venom and Spider-Man share a very complicated history, but when Serkis's take on the character was announced, it became clear that the origins of Hardy's character would not be the same as in the comics, meaning that the relationship between Venom and Peter Parker would not be established in the movie universe. This detail has many fans of the comics frustrated, with one writing, "my problem is that if Tom had to fight Venom I'd want it to be his own version so we can see the full Symbiote story instead of him fighting a Venom that has no personal connection to him."
While another agreed, tweeting, "The connection between them is what actually makes them great. If they don't have that connection, then it is just another generic stupid fan serviced team up".
Meanwhile, other fans were concerned that Hardy's portrayal of Venom is "too dark" to work well alongside Holland's character, who is already well-established within the MCU. Although this perspective, too, was subject to debate, with another Twitter user arguing back, "Venom is literally comedic relief. There's nothing dark about it. Homecoming's car sequence with Vulture was scarier than anything in Venom."