The Venom Cast Clarify How To Pronounce Symbiote

Is it sim-bee-ote, or sim-bye-ote?

Amid all of the excitement generated by Venom‘s first full trailer, Marvel fans were left puzzled by the pronunciation of ‘symbiote,’ given Jenny Slate’s corporate figure insisted on adding a rather odd emphasis on the middle syllable.

The Powers That Be quietly hinted that Slate’s mystery character was actually citing the British version of ‘symbiote,’ as the cast and crew behind Venom – namely Tom Hardy, Riz Ahmed and director Ruben Fleischer – have clarified what is surely the preferred pronunciation of the word. Spoilers: it’s sim-BEE-ote.

Here’s what Fleischer told Entertainment Weekly (h/t ComicBook.com) soon after Venom‘s trailer debut at San Diego Comic-Con.

Yeah for sure, it’s sim-bee-ote. That’s been confirmed. You say poh-tay-to, I say poh-tah-to. I think sim-bee-ote is the preferred pronunciation.

It’s a small hang-up in what’s undoubtedly one of 2018’s most-anticipated movies, but now that Ruben Fleischer has officially gone on record about symbiote and its preferred pronunciation, there should be little doubt about what to call Eddie Brock’s raging alter-ego this October.

Adding to that, the film’s chief antagonist, Riz Ahmed, stated:

I think it’s an America/British thing. Because it can be like symbiosis…

Pronunciation aside, everyone appears to be in agreement that Marvel’s famous alien parasite is about to break new ground for the comic book movie genre – not least because of Tom Hardy’s dual performance as Eddie Brock and his inner demon. It takes an actor of Hardy’s caliber to pull off such a feat (remember his immense turn in The Dark Knight Rises?) and we can’t wait to see more of what Venom has to offer next week.