Woody Harrelson In Talks To Join Tom Hardy In Venom

Variety brings word today that Woody Harrelson, who we recently saw in War for the Planet of the Apes, is negotiating for a role in Sony’s Venom spinoff.

Should a deal place, he’ll star opposite Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams and Riz Ahmed, who is attached to play a “major Marvel character” (Carnage, perhaps?) in the 2018 actioner. Ruben Fleischer of Zombieland fame will be calling the shots from behind the lens, and though Sony declined to comment, it’s being reported that Harrelson will portray “a henchmen of sorts.”

Story-wise, the Eddie Brock solo movie has a script from Scott Rosenberg and Jeff Pinkner, who recently dabbled with rip-roaring adventure thanks to their contribution to the Dwayne Johnson-led yarn, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. Not only that, but over the past few days, both Hardy and Fleischer have been dropping story clues, after the latter revealed another comic inspiration for Venom‘s narrative arc: Planet of the Symbiotes. First published in ’95, its story will seemingly be fused with that of Lethal Protector, which has also been name-dropped as a catalyst for the big-screen adaptation.

And while those two arcs will have a huge bearing on Venom overall, there have also been murmurings that Fleischer and his team have looked to the likes of David Cronenberg and John Carpenter, two giants of cinema, for inspiration when it comes to the film’s body-horror elements. Stay tuned for more on that front.

Venom will claw its way into theaters on October 5th, 2018. Looking further afield, Sony is said to be plotting a separate spinoff based on cult favorite Morbius, the Living Vampire, as well.