Some creatures are so grotesque, they have to be brought to life either in comic panels or through extensive digital effects. The imagination behind creating something like Carnage, the symbiote who’ll be coming out to play in Venom: Let There Be Carnage, is just too immense to simply be portrayed through makeup and suit work. If the world needed a reminder of that fact, the latest trailer for the Marvel Cinematic Universe adjacent sequel starring Tom Hardy is firm proof. In fact, Woody Harrelson’s transformation is so terrifying, it scares even Venom himself.
Director Andy Serkis certainly seems to be at home in the world of Venom: Let There Be Carnage, as he’s not only enhanced the comedic rapport between Eddie Brock and his symbiote, he’s also upped the terror. Harrelson’s Cletus Kasady makes for a definite menace, as he only wants one thing in this world, and he’ll name himself after it to get it. What’s even more interesting than Cletus’s transformation is that we may have actually seen how it comes to pass in the first place.
It all comes down to Cletus Kasady grabbing a little bite of Eddie Brock, because obviously when you’re talking with a nutso serial killer, that’s one of the many minor things that can be par for the course. However, that bite looks to have transferred some of those symbiotic powers to Woody Harrelson’s character. Which, in a way, is the moment that allows a title like Venom: Let There Be Carnage to take shape.
That brings us to that transformation from Cletus to Carnage, which already looked horrific enough in the glimpses the first trailer gave us. But now, watching the shift from Woody Harrelson in a rather gothic looking jacket into full on crimson killing machine is even more horrific. The best way to put it is that Venom: Let There Be Carnage turns Cletus Kasady into a human Rubik’s cube; while still skirting that PG-13/R rated border.
Carnage may be the star of the show in Venom: Let There Be Carnage’s latest trailer, but we do get some other interesting peeks at what’s to come. Obviously, Tom Hardy’s Eddie Brock is still hung up on his ex-girlfriend, Anne (Michelle Williams), so we’re going to see some more rom-com style action in this superpowered flick. But also, we’ve got some promising looks at Naomie Harris’s Shriek, and she looks like she could even give Carnage a run for his money.
Sony’s Marvel Cinematic Universe adjacent world is about to get larger, as Venom: Let There Be Carnage transforms theaters far and wide on September 24th. Don’t let that scare you off from your next night at the movies, as there are still plenty of 2021 new releases coming your way before the Carnage begins. And if you’re in the possession of symbiotic powers, please control yourself at the concession stand.
