A 'Venom' sequel is moving forward, and Sony's Spider-Man movie universe is kicking into high gear
- A "Venom" sequel is in the works with writer Kelly Marcel, a writer of the first movie, according to Variety.
- With the stunning success of "Venom," and "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" winning a Golden Globe on Sunday, Sony's Spider-Man movie universe shows no signs of slowing down.
- Sony owns the rights to 900 Marvel characters, and has several other Marvel movies in development.
"Venom" was one of 2018's most surprising success stories.
It broke the October opening weekend box-office record with $80 million, and went on to score $855 million worldwide. Tom Hardy's bizarre comic-book movie, which is based on one of Spider-Man's most popular enemies, shattered expectations, so it's no surprise that a follow up is on the way.
Sony is developing a "Venom" sequel with Kelly Marcel, a writer on the first movie, set to write the script. Variety first reported the news on Monday, citing anonymous sources, and was followed by multiple outlets, including Entertainment Weekly and The Hollywood Reporter.
In November, Sony dated two Marvel releases for 2020 on July and October 2. The latter was described as an "untitled Sony/Marvel sequel," which is most likely "Venom 2."
Sony did not immediately return a request for comment.
Just a few years ago, Sony's Spider-Man plans appeared to be dead. After "The Amazing Spider-Man 2" failed to excite critics and audiences in 2014, Sony struck a deal with Marvel Studios in which the latter could use Spider-Man in its Marvel Cinematic Universe, while Sony retained distribution rights and creative control.
But now, a "Venom" sequel is being fast-tracked and "Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse" has won the Golden Globe for best animated feature. With 900 Marvel characters that Sony owns the film rights to, its Spider-Man movie universe now shows no signs of slowing down. It's even referred to as "Sony's Universe of Marvel Characters" internally, or SUMC, according to Vanity Fair.
"If they consistently make films audiences want to see, Disney [which owns Marvel] will have to buy Sony to get 'Spider-Man' back," Jeff Bock, a senior box-office analyst for Exhibitor Relations, told Business Insider in November.
Besides a "Venom" sequel, Sony is also developing a Morbius movie, with Jared Leto playing Spider-Man's vampire villain; a movie about Black Cat, who is a regular love interest of Spider-Man in the comics; and a Kraven the Hunter movie, starring another of Spider-Man's biggest enemies. An all-female spin-off of "Into the Spider-Verse" is also in the works, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
"Amazing Spider-Man 2" tried setting up a "Sinister Six" movie that "Cabin in the Woods" director Drew Goddard was attached to direct. That never came to be, but Amy Pascal, the top producer behind the Spider-Man movies and spin-offs, still has hope in light of the recent success of the SUMC.
"I'm just waiting for Drew to be ready to direct it," Pascal told Vanity Fair in December. "I would do anything with Drew Goddard. I'm just waiting for him to tell me he wants to."