A third film in the Marvel Comics-inspired Venom franchise made its way through production last year, shutting down for several months along the way due to the Screen Actors Guild strike. Now the film, titled Venom: The Last Dance, is aiming for an October 25th theatrical release – and with that date just one week away, the Motion Picture Association ratings board has revealed that the film has officially earned a PG-13 rating for intense sequences of violence and action, bloody images and strong language. Star Tom Hardy had previously teased that the movie could end up being rated R, pointing to the success of the Deadpool films as proof that R-rated Marvel adaptations can be successful, but obviously that wasn’t to be. Which makes sense. Although an R rating was considered for the previous movie, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, it also ended up being PG-13 (as was the first movie) – and if you don’t earn an R rating with the Carnage character, why would you earn an R without him?
The first Venom was scripted by Jeff Pinker, Scott Rosenberg, and Kelly Marcel. Ruben Fleischer directed that film, which made $856 million. But then Fleischer turned his focus to making Zombieland: Double Tap and Uncharted – so Andy Serkis took over as director on Venom: Let There Be Carnage. Which was written by Kelly Marcel, working from a story she crafted with star Tom Hardy. That sequel earned $506 million at the pandemic era global box office. Serkis said he would be glad to return to the helm for a follow-up – but when Venom 3 actually did come up, he opted to focus on other projects instead. So Venom: The Last Dance marks the feature directorial debut of Kelly Marcel. She also wrote the screenplay, based (again) on a story she crafted with Hardy.
Hardy is reprising the role of Eddie Brock / Venom for this sequel, and he is joined in the cast by Juno Temple (Ted Lasso), Clark Backo (Letterkenny), and Chiwetel Ejiofor (Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness). Official details on the new characters have not been revealed – but no, Ejiofor is not playing his Doctor Strange character Baron Mordo, since the Venom films are set in a different universe than the Marvel Cinematic Universe films.
Here is the official synopsis from the studio: In Venom: The Last Dance, Tom Hardy returns as Venom, one of Marvel’s greatest and most complex characters, for the final film in the trilogy. Eddie and Venom are on the run. Hunted by both of their worlds and with the net closing in, the duo are forced into a devastating decision that will bring the curtains down on Venom and Eddie’s last dance. The marketing has revealed that Knull, the God of the Symbiotes, shows up in the movie – and Marcel has said this is “just the beginning” for the villain. Since this is meant to be the last Venom movie, that almost seems to confirm the rumors that Knull will carry on into the next Spider-Man movie.
Are you looking forward to Venom: The Last Dance? What do you think of the film getting a PG-13 rating? Let us know by leaving a comment below.