Venom’s staggering $80 million opening weekend box office success has already paved way for a sequel film, Venom 2. In fact, the film’s post-credits teaser has already set up the sequel’s villain.
[Warning: This article contains big plot spoilers for Venom]
Venom’s first credits scene, which airs in the middle of the credits, shows Woody Harrelson’s incarcerated serial killer Cletus Kasady telling Eddie that “there’s gonna be carnage.” The scene in question directly refers to who the sequel’s villain would be.
While fans were expecting Venom to be R-rated, it went on to get a PG-13 rating. Well, it seems the same will be the case with Venom 2.
During a recent interview with Collider, Venom producer Avi Arad gave some hint about Venom 2’s MPAA rating. Despite Carnage joining the cast, Arad doesn’t believe the character’s portrayal can only be done right with an R-rating.
“When you hear Carnage, the only thing you can think of is R,” Arad said. “But, if you know his story, if you really know the comic, there’s no R here. He’s a tortured soul. It’s not about what he does, because we never have to show the knife going from here to there, and the blood is pouring. What you have to show is, what is the motivation? Was he born like that, or [is he] someone we should feel for, because if you succeeding in making a villain someone you can feel for, jackpot.”
If Venom can find success with mixed critical reviews and a PG 13 rating, there’s no point in switching to an R rating for Venom 2 and potentially shrink the audience size. Furthermore, as such big movies are pretty expensive to make, a PG-13 rating gives the filmmakers a higher ceiling in terms of box office.
Venom, starring Tom Hardy, is now playing in theaters worldwide.
Source: Collider
