Sony Pictures bossTom Rothmanis enlisting the help of a longtime friend on one of the studio’s biggest projects, as veteranX-MenproducerHutch Parkerhas joined the producing team ofVenom 2, Collider has learned.
Andy Serkisis directing from a script byKelly Marcel, and the sequel is bringing back the original producing team ofAvi Arad,Matt TolmachandAmy Pascal.
An industry source tells Collider that Parker is “a total pro” who came aboardVenom 2a couple months ago due to his experience with Marvel movies, as well as his relationship with Rothman from their time together at Fox. Parker is also respected by the other producers, who felt he would only make the team stronger.
Parker has a mixed track record with comic book movie fans. While he did produceJames Mangold’s critically acclaimedLoganand its 2013 predecessorThe Wolverine, as well as the well-likedX-Men: Days of Future Past, he was also responsible forJosh Trank’s much-malignedFantastic Fourreboot, as well asX-Men: Apocalypse, the recent summer flopDark Phoenix, and the long-delayedNew Mutantsmovie.
Parker was also a producer onPeter Berg’s terrorism thrillerPatriots Day, which likeLogan, made my Top 10 list the year it was released. Earlier this year, he successfully transitioned his first-look film deal with Fox over to Disney.
Venom 2is an important movie for Sony, not just because the first film grossed $856 million worldwide last year, but because the studio can no longer rely on an “MCU bump” for itsSpider-Manmovies after it wasunable to extend its agreement with Disneyand Marvel.Tom Hardyis set to reprise his role as Eddie Brock, the journalist who joins with an alien symbiote to become Venom. He’s expected to be joined byWoody Harrelson, who was introduced as serial killer Cletus Kasady, aka Carnage, at the end of the first film.
Serkis previously directed the 2017 dramaBreatheas well as Netflix’sMowgli, and it was his expertise with CG and performance-capture technology that helped him beat outTravis KnightandRupert Wyattfor theVenom 2gig. Sony is slated to release the sequel on Aug 13, 2025 — meaning production will have to start relatively soon. Stay tuned to Collider for casting news in the coming weeks…
