Venom Co-Creator Todd McFarlane Reveals What He Hates About ‘Spider-Man 3’

The first Spider-Man spinoff movie Venom was the surprise superhero hit of the year, with a sequel likely to come and a hopeful crossover with Tom Holland’s take on the webslinger.

But this isn’t Venom’s first appearance on the big screen, as Topher Grace previously played the character in the critically panned Spider-Man 3. Venom co-creator Todd McFarlane was not a fan of this version either, and he recently revealed why in a conversation on Collider Live.

Referring to the character’s appearance in the comic books, McFarlane explained “he’s a big, physical presence. And for me artistically, I intentionally created a character that was going to be massive.”

The comic creator continued to speak about Venom’s size and physicality, saying that he would beat Spider-Man every time in a close-quarters fight and that Peter Parker had to rely on something other than strength to defeat this foe.

“Now all the sudden I got Topher, he’s on screen, it’s Spider-Man 3, and I’m going, ‘Here it goes,’” McFarlane added. He expressed excitement at the transformation until he realized Venom was not growing in size, and that the character had the same physical stature as the skinny Topher Grace. “What’s happening? He’s not growing! … He’s just Topher with black [covering him].”

McFarlane said that no one from the film called to consult him about Venom’s appearance, and made it clear he’s not bitter about it because director Sam Raimi and crew were making their own film. However, he was impressed that the new film nailed the character’s appearance.

McFarlane and the rest of us will get to enjoy more of Eddie Brock’s adventures in the future, as screenwriter Jeff Pinkner recently revealed to Discussing Film that he’s currently working on the sequel.

“I can’t say anything other than that it is happening,” Pinkner said. When asked whether or not he was writing the sequel, he replied, “I am not. As of now, I am not.”

Pinkner continued to play coy, but teased that the possibility of Spider-Man’s involvement is not out of the question.

“Without revealing anything that I’m not allowed to reveal, it is not impossible that in a future [or] upcoming Venom movie, Spider-Man will play a significant role.”

There’s no word yet on when fans can expect the Venom sequel to premiere in theaters.