The first Venom: Let There Be Carnage trailer dropped today, and it's definitely got fans talking. Unsurprisingly, the reactions appear to be mixed, with most unsure of what to make of Andy Serkis' take on a franchise that seems destined to never rise above B-movie status.
With that mo-cap expert stepping behind the camera, it does feel like this sequel is in better, albeit untested in terms of blockbuster filmmaking, hands.
It's too soon to say whether things are looking up for this iconic Spider-Man villain, especially as there are some moments in the teaser that leave us seriously concerned about where the follow-up is headed. Given what a hit 2018's Venom was, perhaps Sony doesn't care, but it looks like Let There Be Carnage might end up repeating past mistakes.
And as if that's not bad enough, it also seems to be coming up with plenty of new ones...
5. Venom And Eddie's Dumb Dynamic
Well, this was a nice, cringe-worthy way to kick off the trailer, eh?
In the comics, Eddie Brock has often battled Venom as an inner demon of sorts, struggling to balance his own desires with that of his alien other. That sort of darkness is nowhere to be found here, unfortunately. Instead, Venom is a goofball who attempts to cook an exasperated Eddie breakfast.
The creative use of the symbiote has Serkis' fingerprints all over it, but is this what we really want from one of Spider-Man's most formidable enemies?
He's a clown and not someone even Eddie seems to take seriously if the silly "Rules No Eating People" sign on the wall is any indication (later, Venom does appear to eat someone, a newer addition to the character's repertoire that's unpopular among fans).
4. What The F*** Is The Deal With That Voice?
Tom Hardy plays Eddie Brock and voices Venom, but Sony's decision to make them two separate beings is a weird one, even if it does kind of line up with newer comics.
The bigger issue we have, though, is how Venom's voice appears to have changed since the first film. It seems like Hardy is going seriously OTT with his portrayal of the brain-loving alien this time around, and that's really not done the symbiote any favours, as he's gone from sounding like a slightly sinister version of Eddie's normal voice to a full-blown comedy character.
Clearly, this franchise is heading down that comedy route, which would be a disappointment to many fans anxious to see an R-Rated, "Lethal Protector" version of Venom.
Regardless, the voice sucks, and feels like more of Hardy being weird for the sake of it.
3. What World Is This On, Anyway?
Is Sony just f***ing with us at this point or what?
In the Morbius trailer, the Spider-Man from Sam Raimi's trilogy could quite clearly be seen on graffiti in the background, but that sneak peek ended with Michael Keaton's Adrian Toomes, Spider-Man: Homecoming's lead villain, making a surprise appearance.
This preview shows Cletus squashing a spider, and includes The Daily Bugle...from Raimi's films. That leaves us wondering what the heck is going on, and while Spider-Man: No Way Home might go some way in clearing things up, it's beginning to look like these spinoff films take place on a world that's got elements from various franchises.
We're sure this will be cleared up as time passes, but this feels like a typical, dumb Sony approach to storytelling.
2. Terrible Comedy
We alluded to this in our first slide, but the comedic aspects of this trailer for Venom: Let There Be Carnage stink. The same applied to Venom, but some people loved that, and Tom Hardy's weird antics got the sort of online reaction that created the type of social media buzz Sony seems to like.
Eddie loves chocolate in the comics, but that scene in the convenience store is painful to watch and very, very forced.
Alas, Sony appears to have embraced that sort of juvenile, teenage boy-type humour for the Venom franchise, and we shouldn't be surprised that hasn't changed from the first instalment when the same writer penned this screenplay.
Perhaps it will play better when it's not taken out of context, but if you watched this trailer and found yourself laughing at every gag...well, it might be time to evaluate your life choices, folks.
1. Carnage Looks Only Okay
It hurts us to say this, but Carnage really doesn't look anything special here. The villain's design is a simple one, but for whatever reason, Serkis has chosen to overcomplicate things with countless tendrils that make him look like just another symbiote (see: Riot in Venom).
Heck, we'll go out on a limb and say that Riot was more like Carnage than Carnage, but we can thank Sony for that because they chose to give the underwhelming big bad Cletus' powers back in 2018.
We're certainly not going to discount the live-action Carnage based on two shots, but we'd be lying if we said we're blown away by this design, and we'd have been much happier with the Venom: Let There Be Carnage trailer ending with a considerably less busy version of the character squaring off with Venom.