‘Venom’ Sequel Release Delayed Until 2021, Gets Official Title

Sony’s “Venom” sequel — officially titled “Venom: Let There Be Carnage” — has delayed its big screen debut. The film was expected to hit theaters Oct. 2, 2020, and will instead launch eight months later on June 25, 2021.

“Venom” occupied the spot previously vacated by Robert Pattinson’s “The Batman,” which Warner Bros. recently moved back to Oct. 1, 2021.

By postponing “Venom” until next year, Sony has reshuffled nearly every movie scheduled to release in 2020. The studio already pushed back many of its major films — including “Morbius” (from July 31, 2020, to March 19, 2021), “Ghostbusters: Afterlife” (from July 10, 2020, to March 5, 2021) and Tom Holland’s “Uncharted” (from March 5, 2021, to Oct. 8, 2021).

Across Hollywood, studios are adjusting their release calendars as cinemas remain closed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The global health crisis has also caused almost every film to pause production, meaning some company’s tentpoles might have not been completed in time for their original debut.

Georgia’s Gov. Brian Kemp announced Monday that movie theaters in his state can start reopening next week, but most chains aren’t expected to resume business by then. It’s likely that multiplexes across the country will stay shuttered at least through summer, especially with so few films set to release in the coming months. And there’s a chance that any tentpoles still standing by their release dates — including “Mulan” in late July and “Wonder Woman 1984” in August — will have to move.

Andy Serkis is directing the follow-up to “Venom,” which sees Tom Hardy again assume the alien symbiote known as Venom. The first film became a surprise box office hit, earning $855 million globally. Woody Harrelson, Michelle Williams, Reid Scott and Naomie Harris will also appear in the sequel.