Photo: Courtesy of Sony Pictures; David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage
Tom Hardyand Andy Serkis are a match made in movie heaven.
The two, who share a passion for creating villainous and strange-sounding creatures on film (Hardy, 44, as the titular anti-superhero inVenom, and Serkis, 57, as Gollum inThe Lord of the Ringsfilms), team up for the first time inVenom: Let There Be Carnage. Hardy returns to the dual role of Venom and Eddie Brock, while Serkis directs withWoody Harrelson and Naomie Harris playing the action film’s villainous duo.
“We wanted to work together for years and years because we have, I think, very similar sensibilities and we both like to swim in the dark end of the swimming pool in terms of characters,” Serkis tells PEOPLE during a joint interview with Hardy. “We’ve been in the same world. This was a perfect opportunity.”
Courtesy of Sony Pictures
Making the deal even sweeter for Serkis was the fact that he “loved” the firstVenomfilm, which was released in 2018 and grossed more than $856 million worldwide.
“I loved what Tom had done, and so to come in, to drop into the part of the story where you get to really enjoy the evolution of their, Venom and Eddie’s, it just seemed to all make sense,” the actor-turned-director says.
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Hardy shares the same love for Serkis, who he praises as “one of the best characters actors of our generation.”
It was Hardy, who’s also a producer and has a story credit on the sequel, who actually called Serkis with the offer to direct.
“He’s worked with Peter Jackson on second unit to deliver huge pieces, so it’s not out of his wheelhouse. Then as an artist, as a friend, there’s a connection there of trying to do something which is epic and complicated and complex. It’s great to have somebody there leading it who I know I have a trust as an artist. He has the ability to deliver.”
Venom: Let There Be Carnageis in theaters Thursday.
source: people.com
