Tom Hardy Opens Up About the SPIDER-MAN/VENOM Crossover That Almost Happened

Tom Hardy recently appeared on The Discourse Podcast and talked about a long-rumored Spider-Man and Venom crossover that fans were hoping to see, and how close it actually came to becoming reality.“We got close,” Hardy shared, referring to a potential showdown (or team-up?) with Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. “We got as close as I could possibly imagine getting, apart from doing a film together, which I would have loved to have done because that just means so much fun.”So what happened? Why didn’t we get this mega-movie moment? The Podcast host nudged Hardy on whether studio politics got in the way. Hardy didn’t spell it out, but he didn’t deny it either, saying: “For all the reasons that you explained ultimately in there.”In other words… yeah, it sounds like the usual web of studio complications between Sony and Marvel left the idea dangling just out of reach.Hardy went on to explain why he wanted it to happen, saying: “Fundamentally, for me, it would be for the kids because, you know, as much as adults love superhero films, as you can tell by the box office when they’re successful, I think I’m constantly reminded by children how important these characters are. And they don’t know why their favorite characters aren’t in films together.”Yeah, ok. I get that, but at the same time Venom is a ultra violent Marvel character that eats people’s heads! Venom wasn’t created to be a kids character.Director Ruben Fleischer, who helmed the first Venom film, teased this connection back in the day too, hinting that it was always the endgame. “That’s where it’s all going to lead,” he said. “And that’s the exciting thing, because we changed the origin of Venom [for the first movie]. In the comics, he evolved from Spider-Man, but because of the Marvel-Sony thing, we weren’t able to do that. And so the thing I think it’s building towards, and will be exciting to see, is when they actually do confront each other.”Even as recently as the Venom: The Last Dance premiere, Hardy was still game for the crossover, saying: “I would love to fight Spider-Man. I would love to fight him now. I’m happy to fight Spider-Man today, 100 percent. I would never say never.”It’s interesting that there were discussion of a Spider-Man and Venom crossover movie. I didn’t realize that was something that actually could’ve happened if the stars aligned. But, they didn’t. I’m sure that one day we will see Spider-Man and Venom appear in a Marvel movie together, I just don’t think it will be Tom Hardy’s version of the character.

Apr 1, 2025 - 17:38

Tom Hardy Opens Up About the SPIDER-MAN/VENOM Crossover That Almost Happened

Tom Hardy recently appeared on The Discourse Podcast and talked about a long-rumored Spider-Man and Venom crossover that fans were hoping to see, and how close it actually came to becoming reality.

“We got close,” Hardy shared, referring to a potential showdown (or team-up?) with Tom Holland’s Spider-Man. “We got as close as I could possibly imagine getting, apart from doing a film together, which I would have loved to have done because that just means so much fun.”

So what happened? Why didn’t we get this mega-movie moment? The Podcast host nudged Hardy on whether studio politics got in the way. Hardy didn’t spell it out, but he didn’t deny it either, saying: “For all the reasons that you explained ultimately in there.”

In other words… yeah, it sounds like the usual web of studio complications between Sony and Marvel left the idea dangling just out of reach.

Hardy went on to explain why he wanted it to happen, saying: “Fundamentally, for me, it would be for the kids because, you know, as much as adults love superhero films, as you can tell by the box office when they’re successful, I think I’m constantly reminded by children how important these characters are. And they don’t know why their favorite characters aren’t in films together.”

Yeah, ok. I get that, but at the same time Venom is a ultra violent Marvel character that eats people’s heads! Venom wasn’t created to be a kids character.

Director Ruben Fleischer, who helmed the first Venom film, teased this connection back in the day too, hinting that it was always the endgame.

“That’s where it’s all going to lead,” he said. “And that’s the exciting thing, because we changed the origin of Venom [for the first movie]. In the comics, he evolved from Spider-Man, but because of the Marvel-Sony thing, we weren’t able to do that. And so the thing I think it’s building towards, and will be exciting to see, is when they actually do confront each other.”

Even as recently as the Venom: The Last Dance premiere, Hardy was still game for the crossover, saying: “I would love to fight Spider-Man. I would love to fight him now. I’m happy to fight Spider-Man today, 100 percent. I would never say never.”

It’s interesting that there were discussion of a Spider-Man and Venom crossover movie. I didn’t realize that was something that actually could’ve happened if the stars aligned. But, they didn’t.

I’m sure that one day we will see Spider-Man and Venom appear in a Marvel movie together, I just don’t think it will be Tom Hardy’s version of the character.