Sony has officially revealed that the sequel to ‘Venom’ will be named ‘Venom: Let There Be Carnage’, but has also announced that the highly-anticipated sequel to 2018’s surprise smash has been postponed from its June 25, 2021 release date, to October 1, 2021. The reason is exactly what you think it is– the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. Although there is hope that the movie industry and all others will start to bounce back within the next few months, the month+ shutdown that we’ve already endured has forced a lot of movies to already be pushed back due to productions or post-production work having to cease as everyone was urged to quarantine at home.
The movies ‘Tenent’ and ‘Mulan’ were rescheduled for late July of this year and there is still hope that they will open at that time, but the film industry has so many moving parts, from the studios to theaters, not to mention state-enforced shelter-in-place regulations that will impact those decisions.
Motion-capture ace Andy Serkis helmed ‘Venom 2’, and stars Tom Hardy and Michelle Williams are returning. Woody Harrelson, who made a surprise cameo during the post-credits scene of the first movie, will be back as the serial killer Cletus Kasady, who will assume the symbiote identity of Carnage. Naomie Harris will appear in the film, and it is believed that she will portray another villain, Shriek, a.k.a. Frances Barrison. Stephen Graham has also been cast, but his role is unknown.
This is the second of Sony Pictures’ “Spider-Verse” movies to be delayed due to the coronavirus. In late March, the studio shifted ‘Morbius’ from July 30, 2020, to March 19, 2021. Daniel Espinosa directed that picture, based on comic book character Michael Morbius, a scientific-based pseudo-vampire that has served as both an ally and a foe to Spider-Man. Jared Leto heads up that cast, which also includes Tyrese Gibson as Simon Stroud, Adria Arjona as Martine Bancroft, Matt Smith as Loxias Crown, and Jared Harris and Michael Keaton in mystery role. However, the trailer for that picture clearly contained references to the events of ‘Spider-Man: Far From Home’, which would indicate that ‘Morbius’ and the two existing MCU ‘Spidey’ movies are set in the same shared universe. That would most likely mean that Keaton is reprising his role as Adrian Toomes a.k.a. The Vulture.
So for the time being, ‘Morbius’ is set to hit theaters on March 19, 2021, and ‘Venom: Let There Be Carnage’ is October 1, 2021. Check back for any additional changes to Hollywood’s ever-evolving release schedule.
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