Venom, starring Tom Hardy in Sony’s Marvel Universe (based upon characters of the Spider-Man comics, though Spidey has been nowhere to be seen here), hits theaters in two weeks. The film has been largely marketed upon Hardy’s Jeckyl-and-Hyde-esque transformation after fusing with an alien alien symbiote, and people are faux-thirsting for the revolting tongue action featured in trailers. The first actual clip, however, has been revealed by Sony (and courtesy of IGN) and does less to build anticipation for the titular anti-hero than the trailers.
The clip shows Hardy on the story as his journalist character, Eddie Brock, while “ambushing” Dr. Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed) about his pharmaceutical experiments with a camera crew in tow. “I have always believed that space exploration is crucial in our quest to cure everything that ails us here on Earth,” Ahmed explains. Brock presses him on how people have died from these experiments, and Ahmed walks away despite Brock’s protests while remarking, “Have a nice life.” It’s an ominous note, and one that foreshadows Ahmed’s future transformation into a supervillain when he also fuses with a symbiote.
While this clip isn’t thrilling, it may be aimed at enlightening those audience members who aren’t comic fans but will buy tickets to see the latest Tom Hardy pic. Tracking numbers (via Deadline) for the film have suggested that Venom may not blow minds in terms of Marvel titles but could still smash October records at the box office. Much of this has to do with professed interest by females and males of all ages, due to Hardy’s wide appeal. Can the man who played Bane pull off an unlikely success for an underdog Marvel title? We’ll find out after October 5, when Venom sticks a tongue into theaters.