Venom (film) Trivia

Trivia about Venom.

• The first attempt at a Venom movie began in 1995 when New Line Cinema had purchased the film rights to the character and had hired David S. Goyer to write a script treatment. Goyer's script ironically bears similarities with what would become the final film, namely the complete exclusion of Spider-Man from Venom's origins (as they did not possess the rights to him). Rather, the symbiote would hail from an unknown planet inhabited by alien spiders and other stronger symbiotes dubbed "Blood Hunters" who were black and red. The Blood Hunters would see the Venom symbiote as inferior and would attempt to kill it. The symbiote would escape by bonding to one of the alien spiders and climbing aboard a spacecraft which would fly off and crash land on Earth. Eddy Brock and Cletus Kasady would be orphans who grew up at St. Estus Orphanage, but Cletus being psychotic, would have burned the orphanage down and would have taken Eddy hostage before being apprehended. In present day, Brock is a journalist in love with psychiatrist Ashley Kafka, while Cletus is a infamous cult leader and murderer. Eddy would collaborate with the police to apprehend and capture Cletus and do so successfully. Cletus is sentenced to public execution, but not before his followers corner and assault Eddy. However, the symbiote, having made it's way into the city, would save Brock by bonding to him, becoming an humanoid monster with spider-like characteristics, dubbing himself Venom. Kasady's execution would also be interrupted by a Blood Hunter's arrival, which would bond to him as well. Brock and Kasady would confront and fight each other, with Kasady proving stronger and beating Brock.
• Brian Michael Bendis turned down the chance to write the movie.
• Gary Ross was in talks with Sony Pictures to direct the film.
• In March 2012, Chronicle director Josh Trank was negotiating with Sony about his interest in directing the spinoff film back when plans were it to be canon to The Amazing Spider-Man (2012), but instead was selected by Fox to direct Fantastic Four (2015).
• This film is well-known to have an extremely difficult production history. Outside of New Line Cinema's unproduced project, the film was at first envisioned as a direct spin-off from Spider-Man 3, though Topher Grace was stated not to return to the role. Shortly after that series was rebooted, the film was announced once again, though this time within continuity of the Webb duology. Chris Zylka expressed interest in playing Flash Thompson as the Agent Venom incarnation, which was currently running in the comics when The Amazing Spider-Man was released. Once The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was released Sony announced the film as Venom: Carnage as part of the Amazing Spider-Man canon. Soon after, Sony and Marvel decided to collaborate with the Spider-Man series opting to reboot again after the sequel didn't earn enough money at the box office and placing the Venom movie on hold. Though Sony made clear their intention to go through with their spin-with or without Marvel Studios and Disney's say, which finally lead to pre-production on this film.
• Stephen Farrelly, Kellan Lutz and Finn Wittrock wanted to played Venom.
• Sony had considered casting Finn Wittrock as Venom and Alan Tudyk as Carnage while it was still connected to The Amazing Spider-Man, considering introducing Brock and the symbiote in The Amazing Spider-Man 3 individually to set up Venom.
• Alex Kurtzman was in talks to direct the movie.
• Another working title of the film was The Amazing Spider-Man: Venom.
• The current working title, according to trademark info, is "The Lethal Protector" as of June 2016. It will not take place in the MCU.
• David F. Sandberg revealed that he was offered to direct the film but choose Shazam! instead.
• Tom Holland, who now plays Spider-Man in the MCU, has expressed immense interest in having his version of Spider-Man crossover with Venom, wanting to bring their vendetta back to screens since Spider-Man 3. Tom Hardy, who portrays Venom in this film, has shared this idea.
• The first film in the Sony's Marvel Universe.
• The 2017 film Life was rumored to be a prequel to the movie. This was proven to be false.
• The film will be loosely based on the "Lethal Protector" and "Planet of the Symbiotes" comic-book storylines.
• Walton Goggins, Jim Carrey and Cameron Monaghan were the top fan picks for the role of Carnage.
• Jackie Earle Haley expressed interest in playing the role of Carnage.
• Josh Emerson was a fan favorite to play Eddie Brock/Venom.
• Out of several actors that were requested and rumored by fans to play "Carnage" (Jim Carrey, Michael C. Hall, Michael Fassbender), Cameron Monaghan is the only one to express great interest in playing the role. Monaghan is known for portraying the breakout role and fan favorite "Jerome" in the TV series Gotham. Ultimately, Woody Harrelson was chosen over him.
• Tom Hardy's son Louis Thomas Hardy is a fan of Venom, and Hardy took the role to please him: "I wanted to do something my son could watch. So I did something where I bite people's heads off." Louis also guided his father on how to appropriately portray Brock/Venom, since Hardy didn't know the character very well.
• Besides portraying Eddie Brock, Tom Hardy also provided the voice and physical stand-in for several scenes of Venom.
• Was originally going to be released with an R rating, following in the success of the Deadpool duology with a third one planned and Logan. Sony executives decided to cut it down to a PG-13, for any potential tie-ins with the MCU or it's version of Spider-Man. A director's cut with an R rating is rumored to be in the works after the theatrical release.
• The filmmakers cite the films of horror directors John Carpenter and David Cronenberg as an influence on the film, as well as the horror comedy films An American Werewolf in London and Ghostbusters.
• Tom Hardy describes Venom as a tragic clown: "There's something funny about the circumstances of having a tragic gift. It's a superpower you don't really want, but at the same time, you love it. It makes you feel special. He's both a reluctant hero and an anti-hero."
• Tom Hardy recorded his lines for the Venom symbiote during pre-production, and they were played back to the actor through an earpiece on set during scenes where Brock and the symbiote talk to each other.
• Tom Hardy considers Venom the coolest Marvel hero because "he has a brazen swagger and a zero foxtrot attitude."
• In the Marvel comics, there are a total of 20 other symbiotes. 21 if you Include Venom. the symbiote names are, with their first comic appearance: Carnage (The Amazing Spider-Man #361), Scream (Venom: lethal Protector #4), Hybrid (venom: Along came a spider #1), Riot (Venom: lethal Protector #4), Phage (Venom: lethal Protector #4), Toxin (Venom vs. Carnage # 2), Lasher (Venom: lethal Protector #4), Dreadface (fantastic four #360), Agony (Venom: lethal Protector #4), Krobaa (Venom: Seed of Darkness #1), Payback (True Believers limited series), ZZZXX (X-Men: Kingbreaker #2), Scorn (Carnage #5), All-Black The Necrosword (Thor: God of Thunder #2), Mania (Venom #31), Marcus (Deadpool: The Gauntlet #8), Endo-Sym Armor (Superior Iron Man #1), Agent of the Cosmos (Guardians of the Galaxy #23), Karl Malus (Captain America: Sam Wilson #3), Raze (Carnage #10), The Grendel Symbiotes (Venom Vol. 4 #2), Knull (Venom: Vol. 4 #3), Sleeper (Venom: First Host #3) and Anti-venom (The Amazing Spider-Man #569)
• Sony considered Finn Wittrock as Venom and Alan Tudyk as Carnage while it was still developed as canon to The Amazing Spider-Man.
• The film released in the 30th Anniversary year of Venom's debut in Marvel comics (May 1988).
• Tom Hardy cites The Ren & Stimpy Show as an influence on the relationship between Eddie Brock and Venom: "I always saw Venom as a lounge lizard, and Eddie Brock as an everyday kind of guy who's inherited this massive ego beast."
• The film includes three Oscar nominees in the cast: Tom Hardy, Michelle Williams, and Woody Harrelson.
• Tom Hardy (Eddie Brock/Venom) had played the supervillain Bane in The Dark Knight Rises. In the comics, Bane ingested a serum named Venom to gain super strength. Bane and Venom are also commonly compared to each other as their company's equivalents, due to their unique rivalries with both Spider-Man and Batman (namely knowing their secret identities and using it to their advantage).
• In June 2017, Marvel Producer Kevin Feige confirmed that the movie would not be set in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. However, Amy Pascal contradicted this by saying it would. It was later announced that same month that Venom is its own universe, but could potentially crossover with the MCU or introduce Spider-Man in their own future films.
• Walton Goggins, Jim Carrey, and Cameron Monaghan were the top fan picks for the role of Carnage.
• This is Michelle Williams' first superhero film. When asked why she wanted to be a part of this movie, she said, "I always like to do things I haven't done before, genres, parts. I like a challenge, and one of those challenges has been stepping into a bigger world."
• This film takes place outside of the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
• Originally it was supposed to be an R rating for the film, but it was changed to a PG-13 in hopes of a crossover with Spider-Man from the MCU.
• Jameson, the astronaut who survived the crash in the opening sequence, is the son of Jonah Jameson - editor of the Daily Bugle with an immense detractor of Spider-Man.
• Besides Riz Ahmed, also considered for Carlton Drake were Matt Smith, Pedro Pascal and Matthias Schoenaerts.
• Cameron Monaghan stated he would've loved to play Carnage in the movie.
• The second trailer garnered 64.3 million views within twenty-four hours of release. The views ballooned to 124.7 million views within the first week of the trailer's release.
• Topher Grace, who portrayed Eddie Brock/Venom in Spider-Man 3, has praised Tom Hardy's potrayal as Venom.
• Venom (2018) is supposedly connected to the Marvel Cinematic Universe according to the film's co-producer Amy Pascal. Though Kevin Feige has stated that's not the case, it's still unknown whether or not this film's actually connected to MARVEL Studios' flagship franchise at all.
• Tom Hardy based his performance as Eddie Brock/Venom on three actors: Woody Allen ("the tortured neurosis and all the humor that can come from that"), martial artist fighter Conor McGregor ("the taste and capability for uber-violence"), and Redman ("out of control, living rent-free in his head.").
• Originally, Tom Hardy was going to portray Venom in motion-capture visual effects, but that plan was scrapped because the facial features couldn't be imitated: "Your eyes and teeth and tongue are not going to match with his, and you need a seven-foot tall basketball player in a Lycra suit for the physical shots!" Venom is fully computer graphics imagery in the film.
  • However, Tom Hardy did perform as Venom on-camera in the costume of Brock, over which Venom was animated in key-frame to match the movements and stunts of Hardy.
• Tom Hardy cites singer James Brown as an influence on Venom's voice.
• Alex Kurtzman and Dante Harper were originally set to direct and write the film respectively.
• This is Production Designer Oliver Scholl's fifth comic book film, after Batman Forever, Elektra, Suicide Squad and Spider-Man: Homecoming.
• The film's official movie poster is designed in a similar fashion to one of Spider-Man 2s movie posters. In each poster, the design presents the main character's face partially covered by part of his costume.
• In March 2012, Chronicle (2012) Director Josh Trank was negotiating with Sony about his interest in directing.
• Jenny Slate's character, Dora Skirth, is an original character exclusive to the movie. She was originally rumored to be playing Leslie Gesneria, who was bonded to the symbiote Agony in the comics, prior to release.
• Michele Lee was originally slated to be playing Donna Diego, who in the comics was bonded to the symbiote Scream. However, she instead plays Corinne Wan, a Malaysian paramedic who is used as host by the Riot Symbiote, and dies fairly early in the film. However, a yellow symbiote implied to be Scream appears early in the film.
• This is the second comic-book feature for Tom Hardy (after The Dark Knight Rises), Jenny Slate (after The Lego Batman Movie), Sope Aluko and composer Ludwig Göransson (after Black Panther).
• Out of the five Marvel-based films released in 2018, this one is the only non-sequel. However, Black Panther was the start of its own sub-franchise despite it being a spin-off of Captain America: Civil War and part of the combined Marvel Cinematic Universe.
• In the comics, Eddie Brock is 6'3" and has strawberry-blond hair. Tom Hardy, who plays Eddie Brock in the film, is 5'9" and has dark-brown hair.
• Zac Efron joked that he is playing Eddie Brock on April Fool's Day.
• It was referenced that Eddie Brock was fired from the Daily Bugle in New York. This is the iconic news company where Peter Parker/Spider-Man was a photographer.
• Tom Hardy's first role for a Marvel-related production, his second superhero film since The Dark Knight Rises (from DC Comics/Entertainment, Marvel's longtime competitor) and his first Columbia/Sony Pictures associated production since Marie Antoinette.
• Carlton Drake (Riz Ahmed) is younger than his comic book counterpart. He was also not the original host of the Riot Symbiote.
• This is Jenny Slate's first Columbia movie.
• The filmmakers cite the Venom comic storylines "Lethal Protector" (Venom becomes a vigilante guardian hero for San Francisco) and "Planet of the Symbiotes" (Earth is invaded by an army of symbiotes) as an influence on the film.
• Ann Weying briefly uses the Venom symbiote to rescue Eddie. This is a homage to the comics, when Ann was briefly bonded to the symbiote as She-Venom.
• In the comics, the Venom symbiote was initially attached to Spider-Man (Peter Parker) during the Secret Wars event in 1984. When he realized his costume was alive and was controlling his body, he disposed of it. It would later come in contact with Eddie Brock, and the two would be bonded together to form Venom. Later adaptations, like Spider-Man: The Animated Series or The Spectacular Spider-Man would revise this into the symbiote arriving on Earth by hijacking a space voyage piloted by John Jameson, which injures him, and the symbiote attaching to Spider-Man by chance, and began to slowly corrupt him until he realizes what's happening and forcefully rips it off of him at a cathedral bell tower, which Eddie would be at by coincidence, and ended up bonding to it and becoming Venom by chance as well, and due to it's previous bond with Spider-Man, absorbed his powers and was able to use them against him. This film entirely omits any involvement of Spider-Man in Venom's origin, due to Sony/Columbia selling the character's rights to Marvel Studios (he would appear in Captain America: Civil War (2016) and Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)). However, it still uses the botched space shuttle mission as the symbiotes' arrival on Earth, albeit with the Life Foundation purposely looking for them and directly experimenting with the bonding process, and Eddie getting directly involved into looking for it rather than a chance meeting at a cathedral, but with the omission of Spider-Man entirely.
• While this is Venom's second live-action film after Spider-Man 3, other symbiotes will make their debut in this film.
• In the comics, there are nine named symbiotes including Venom. 8 of which are full symbiotes. The symbiotes are: Venom (obviously), Agony, Phage, Lasher, Scream, Riot, Carnage, Toxin and Anti-Venom.
• This movie was the last Marvel movie in which Stan Lee had a cameo before his death in November 2018.