Everyone’s favorite symbiote is back — and he’s bringing friends.
Sony Pictures’Venomcast Tom Hardy as Spider-Man’s longtime nemesis, and although the 2018 film didn’t click with critics, audiences loved its campy charm. The antihero character will only become more important to Sony’s plans with the release ofVenom: Let There Be Carnage, which now has its first trailer.
Directed by Andy Serkis,Venom: Let There Be Carnageis scheduled to hit theaters on July 22, 2025, and will bring back Hardy as Eddie Brock, Venom’s human host, as well as Woody Harrelson as Cletus Kasady, the murderous host of a new symbiote, Carnage. Michelle Williams and Reid Scott will also return for the sequel, with Naomie Harris joining the cast. Here’s everything we know aboutVenom: Let There Be Carnageso far.
Cletus Cassady transforms into Carnage and we learn a little more about Naomie Harris’ Shriek in a new clip and a new vignette.
IMAX poster
Things are sick, twisted, and violent in the new IMAX poster forVenom: Let There Be Carnage.
New TV spots and photos
The most recent TV spot features a delightful a capella rendition of “Amazing Grace” over some casual grotesqueness. The film’s official Twitter page also has a TV spot, along with a few new photos for the upcoming film.
There’s something way bigger happening. Discover it in#Venom: Let There Be Carnage exclusively in movie theaters October 1.Get tickets now!🎟:https://t.co/thOGY97pJRpic.twitter.com/y0J1BEROw0
— #Venom: The Last Dance (@VenomMovie)June 06, 2025
The world will see red. Woody Harrelson stars in#Venom: Let There Be Carnage, exclusively in movie theaters October 1. Tickets on sale now.pic.twitter.com/boiYnmFQ7x
— #Venom: The Last Dance (@VenomMovie)August 05, 2025
She’s back in black. Michelle Williams stars in#Venom: Let There Be Carnage, exclusively in movie theaters October 1. Tickets on sale now.pic.twitter.com/RjyKjI6OKl
An odd love story
Speaking withScreen Rant, Tom Hardy shed some light on Venom and Eddie Brock’s relationship, comparing it to oddball relationships in films likeThe Odd CoupleandThe Seven Year Itch. The exact quote reads:
Yeah. It’s a hundred percent a love story. I mean, it opens up with, this is a love story. It’s just not … There’s an absurd, surreal element to that. But it’s not what you think, it’s about a kind of dysfunctional love. There’s a buddy movie there. There’sThe Odd Couple, there’sThe Seven Year Itch. There’s an element ofThelma and Louise, orNatural Born Killers, orTrue Romancewith the other couple in that movie as well. And there’s these two couples in there, and then there’s…well, there’s three because there’s Dr. Dan and Anne as well. So it’s like, three couples intertwined in very different relationships, with varying degrees of functionality, or dysfunction, as you would like it, in a sort of operatic ride of thrills, with ultimately, Carnage and Cletus Cassidy being the nemesis of Venom, and his son. So, you’ve got a father, son movie too in there. So we came at it from lots of angles of, how do we make this? How do we get more out of our characters that we love? How do we introduce new ones? How do we make a comparative reflection between the couples and love. And what’s that about? But also it be good fun.
New photos
A new series of stills from the upcoming film has hit Twitter. Take a look at Carnage, Venom, Hardy as Eddie Brock, Harris as Shriek, Harrelson as Cletus Kasady, Stephen Graham as Patrick Mulligan (aka Toxin), and Williams as Anne Weying.
Some new images from Venom: Let There be Carnage have surfaced. We’re not quite sure where they’re from, but they’re making the rounds on Twitter.
Carnage.pic.twitter.com/ZvBvlV08wL
— TheVenomSite (@thevenomsite)June 16, 2025
Venom and Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock. Does Venom look skinner? Maybe he’s starving for some heads.pic.twitter.com/fTtnIMbbLz
Naomie Harris as Shriek, she don’t want her food.
Woody Harrelson as Cletus Kasady.pic.twitter.com/bYNmpUPuN2
And two more as it looks like Eddie is being interrogated by Patrick Mulligan (Toxin!), is Anne Weying, played by Michelle Williams, his lawyer?pic.twitter.com/zNRFgzQ9bC
New poster
A new poster from China shows Carnage and Venom entwined in what appears to be a very slimy battle.
Here is a HD version of China’s#VenomLetThereBeCarnageposter!pic.twitter.com/ROLuu0sGz4
— Venom Movie News 🎥 (@VenomMovieNews)July 26, 2025
First trailer
The first trailer forVenom: Let There Be Carnageis here and despite a surprisingly mellow beginning, it surely lives up to the subtitle. See ourfull breakdownof the trailer and what to expect come June.
Release date and title
Originally scheduled to hit theaters in October 2020,Venom: Let There Be Carnagehad its release date pushed back to June 2021, then again to September 2021, andagainto October 2021 due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic. Now, it’s slated for October 1. On the same day that the movie’s June 2021 premiere date was announced, the studio also revealed the film’s full, official title.
Set photos
Photos from the San Francisco set of the film began finding their way online via social media in late February, with Tom Hardy, Woody Harrelson, and director Andy Serkis all making appearances in the images.
A post shared by Greg Williams (@gregwilliamsphotography)
https://www.instagram.com/p/B85RpjrgzeH/?utm_source=ig_embed
Hello, Carnage
Tom Hardy gave the world its first look atWoody Harrelson as Carnage inVenom 2in mid-February, courtesy of a stylized photo of the actor posted onInstagram.
The photo was removed a short time later, but not before sparking plenty of discussion online. The photo doesn’t reveal Carnage’s signature, red-and-black symbiote guise — a variation on Venom’s own, black-and-white costume — but the colors of Harrelson’s shirt do seem to be a nod to Cletus Kasady’s vicious alter ego.
An oh-so-precious director
You probably know Serkis as the man behindThe Lord of the Rings‘ Gollum,War for the Planet of the Apes‘Caesar, andStar Wars: The Last Jedi‘sSupreme Leader Snoke, but the veteran motion-capture artist is going behind the camera onVenom: Let There Be Carnageto serve as the film’s director.
While Serkis is most famous for his motion-capture characters, the English filmmaker does have directorial experience. In 2017, Serkis released his first feature film,Breathe, which starred Andrew Garfield andThe Crown‘s Claire Foy. In 2018, Serkis’ performance capture-heavy adaptation ofThe Jungle Book,Mowgli: Legend of the Jungle, arrived on Netflix after a brief theatrical run.
It’s happening. The Symbiote has found a host in me and I’m ready for the ride…Can’t wait!#venom#venom2#marvelpic.twitter.com/unCzmJOjop
— Andy Serkis (@andyserkis)July 19, 2025
Eddie Brock’s sophomore outing will be written by Kelly Marcel, one ofVenom‘s three credited writers, according toThe Hollywood Reporter. In addition toVenom, Marcel’s other credits includeFifty Shades of Grey,Saving Mister Banks, and Disney’sCruella, which will focus on the titular villain of101 Dalmatiansfame.
True DetectiveandZombielandstar Harrelson, who appeared in one ofVenom’s post-credit sequences as serial killer Cletus Kasady, will return inVenom: Let There Be Carnageas the murderous red symbiote Carnage.
In the comics, Kasady was Eddie Brock’s cellmate and bonded with the Venom symbiote’s offspring during a prison break. In addition to giving him superpowers, Kasady’s symbiote affected the killer’s already unbalanced mind, making him stronger and more deadly than Venom could ever hope to be.
Hardy’sVenomco-star Michelle Williams will also be returning forVenom 2in the role of Eddie’s former fiancée, Anne Weying, with supporting actor Reid Scott reprising his role as Anne’s boyfriend, Dan Lewis.
Moonlightand James Bond franchise actress Naomie Harris (pictured above) will join the cast as Shriek, the psychopathic villain who becomes Cletus’ love interest in Marvel Comics lore.
Into the Spider-Verse
Venomwas only the beginning.In addition to a secondVenommovie, Sony is currently developing a handful of live-action films based onsupporting Spider-Man characters, including Morbius the Living Vampire, the Black Cat, and Madame Web, among other rumored projects. Sony also has a number ofSpider-Man: Into the Spider-Versespinoffs in preproduction, including a feature following an all-female team of spider heroes, a direct sequel to the first movie focusing on the relationship between Gwen and Miles Morales, and several animated TV projects.
It’s possible that Tom Holland’s Peter Parker could join Sony’s mini Marvel Universe, too, and perhaps even make a cameo inVenom 2. PerSony and Disney’s new deal, which will see Holland’s Spidey appear in at least one more solo Marvel Cinematic Universe film and one more Marvel team-up, Spider-Man is now free to be part of both cinematic universes.
In fact,Venomco-writer Jeff Pinkner hinted as much in a discussion withDiscussing Film. While Venom’s archnemesis, Spider-Man, didn’t show up inVenom, Pinker admitted that “it is not impossible that in a future/upcoming Venom movie, Spider-Man will play a significant role.”
