It looks like Sony is putting the fast-track on on theirVenommovie. Last year, we learned that the studio was putting the wheels back in motion on their long-developed cinematic spin-off for the iconicSpider-Manvillain. Now, per Exhibitor Relations, Sony has added the film to their release calendar for August 05, 2025.
That’s a pretty fast timetable for a spectacle-oriented film, especially one that will require as many VFX as Venom, so it’s possible they’ve already got some talent lined up. If not, expect updates to come fast as that’s an imposing deadline to meet.
The last update we got on theVenommovie came last spring when we learned Sony wasreviving the projectwith a script fromDante Harper. At the time, it was reported that the new incarnation of the project exists apart from and unrelated to the studio’s rebootedSpider-Mansaga and the MCU. We don’t yet know if plans have changed in the development process, but last we heard, long-time SonySpider-ManproducersAvi AradandMatt Tolmachwere spearheading the project with no mention of Feige. Arad and Tolmach have overseen theSpider-Manfeature film franchise since it kicked off with Sam Raimi’s 2002Spider-Man.
The Venom movie has traveled a bit of a rocky road to production. Back in 2014, before the release ofThe Amazing Spider-Man 2, Sony was deep in development on a series of interconnected superhero films pullingSpider-Man, their sole comic book property.The AmazingSpider-Man 2was set to be followed by a third Spider-Man installment, which would lead into the villain-centricSinister Sixto be directed byDrew Goddard(The Cabin in the Woods).Alex Kurtzman’s (Welcome to People) spinoffVenomwas intended to followSinister Six,but afterThe Amazing Spider-Man 2debuted to dismal reviews and lowest global box office of anySpider-Manmovie yet, Sony went back to the drawing board. Plans for
The studio toyed with a few ideas expanding on the Spider-Man brand (including afemale-centric Spidey pictoa film focusing on the adventures of Aunt May), but then came theunprecedented dealwith Marvel Studios that rebooted the character from scratch once again with guidance from Marvel boss Kevin Feige as a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Which is how we ended up with Tom Holland’s web-slinger inCaptain America: Civil Warand that MCU touch on the upcomingSpider-Man: Homecoming.
It’s unclear if Sony still intends to keep theirVenomfranchise separate from theSpider-Manuniverse and the MCU brand, but it’s not hard to see why they would want to build a comic book franchise that belongs solely to them. However, ifVenom is steering clear of Spidey territory, that leaves some interesting questions about what incarnation of the comic book character they’ll be looking to as the lead for a major franchise. I think we can safely assume it will be rather different than the incarnation we met inSpider-Man 3.
What do you guys think? Are you interested in a Venom movie that’s separate from the Spider-Man franchise? How would you like to see the property handled? Are you buying into the theory thatLifeis aVenomprequel? (It’s almost certainly not.) Sound off in the comments.
