Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Tom Hardy’s Venom, Silver Sable and Black Cat won’t appear in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Sony confirms

Which means they may never share screentime with Spider-Man - at least, Tom Holland's version of the character

Hanna Flint
Monday 26 June 2017 07:10 EDT
Comments

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Marvel fans hoping to see Tom Hardy’s Venom onscreen with the likes of Chris Hemsworth’s Thor or Robert Downey Jr.’s Iron Man will be sadly disappointed.

Sony has confirmed that the Spider-Man villain will not be a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe - which is the shared universe of films and TV shows made by Marvel Studios.

Tom Holland’s Spider-Man was recently added to the MCU mix after the studio (owned by Disney) reached a deal with Sony - who own the film rights to the webslinger and the main characters of the superhero’s comic book universe - to allow him to appear in both Captain America: Civil War, Avengers: Infinity War and its sequel.

Now Sony’s Amy Pascal has made it clear that no other characters from their Marvel films - including Silver Sable and Black Cat - will appear in future MCU projects, after fans took her previous comments to mean there could be potential for a crossover.

“Everyone seems to have totally misunderstood what I said, and I'm so glad for a chance to say it,” the Spider-Man: Homecoming producer told Fandango’s Erik Davies.

“All the characters are a part of the Marvel comic book universe, and they're all interrelated in that universe. Spider-Man is now part of the MCU, as he was created to be in the beginning. The other things that Sony are doing, which are characters from the Marvel comic book universe, are independent, separate franchises. Both Venom and Silver Sable and Black Cat."


This means that not only will the Venom and Silver & Black films be separate from the MCU, but the titular characters may never share the screen with Spider-Man either.

Zombieland’s Ruben Fleischer is directing the Venom film - with Hardy playing the original Eddie Brock iteration - while Gina Prince-Bythewood is set to direct Silver & Black. There is an MCU connection to the latter film - centred on two female anti-heroes - as Thor: Ragnarok writer, Chris Yost, is penning the script.

Spider-Man: Homecoming Featurette - Coolest. Mentor. Ever.

There has been no casting confirmations for the lead roles, however the Love & Basketball director says she is full of ideas. “I go to bed thinking about it, I wake up thinking about it, and during the day, I have my notebook where I’m jotting down ideas and visuals and music,” Prince-Bythewood told Vulture.

“It’s so up my alley in terms of these two female characters and who they are and what they’re about. It’s the perfect way for me to dive into the Marvel universe, to focus on these two women who I really respect and can’t wait to bring to life.”

Spider-Man: Homecoming is in cinemas on July 7. Venom is set for release on October 5, 2018.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in