Venom 2 Reportedly to Begin Shooting Very Soon

The Symbiote is gearing up for a comeback with Eddie Brock, as Sony Pictures will apparently get started on the sequel to their hit Spider-Man spinoff movie Venom. It was recently announced that Andy Serkis will take over the director's chair, uniting with actors Tom Hardy and Michelle Williams for Venom 2. Now we know when Sony will plan to get started on the movie, with a new listing from Production Weekly indicating that filming could begin before the end of the year.

According to the new listing, Venom 2 will begin production on November 25th under the working title "Fillmore." That means we're a little over two months away from Hardy's return to his zany portrayal of Eddie Brock.

Producer Amy Pascal said that Hardy portrayed the definitive version of the popular Marvel anti-hero, explaining in an interview with Fandango that the actor is pivotal to the franchise.

"It's a couple of things. One of them is that Sony did a great job creating that franchise and giving it a life and giving it its own world," Pascal said. "Then there's Tom Hardy. When you think of Venom, you'll never be able to think of anyone but Tom Hardy sitting in that bathtub of lobsters. And once you saw Tom Hardy do this character, that's all you needed to know."

The film will likely flesh out Woody Harrelson's role as Cletus Kasady, who was briefly teased in the end of Venom. It's likely that he'll get his own Symbiote in Venom 2, finally becoming the fan-favorite Spider-Man villain Carnage.

Cinematographer Robert Richardson confirmed that he'll be joining the new movie, teasing Harrelson's expanded role during an interview with Collider.

"I think it's unexplored yet, and it's going to explode, and this film, I think, will help it explode, because you have a remarkable central character with Venom," said Richardson. "But now you've got Woody Harrelson, who's going to obviously make his own little entrance here, and we'll see what else comes in with the Sony Marvel collaboration."

With Marvel Studios out of the picture, Venom 2 could make major waves and add Tom Holland to the cast and fully incorporate Spider-Man into their spinoff franchise. This will be the first major project from Sony Pictures without Marvel, so we'll get our first look at their plans for the characters soon.

Venom 2 is scheduled to premiere in theaters on October 2, 2020.