Sony’s Venom is still in a bit of a strange place. So far, it exists in a limbo state, as on the one hand, these live-action films are supposedly part of the MCU without direct crossovers, similar to the Marvel TV shows, while on the other, some point to it being an isolated project. Whatever it may turn out to be, Tom Hardy seems to be having a blast with the film, as he has been actively teasing it on Instagram, something he did with his other project Taboo as well. One picture in particular, which does not seem to be online anymore on his personal account, shows him in a military outfit, which luckily the Instagram account TomHardyDotOrg saved.

Naturally, fans wondered whether the story was taking inspiration from Flash Thompsons’ Agent Venom storyline from the comics. We know that he is playing the original Venom, Eddie Brock, but without any confirmed presence of Peter Parker in the film, they might have to go into a completely different direction with his character.

Yet, Hardy‘s recent appearance to promote the film at the Comic-Con Experience 2017 in Sao Paulo teased a different direction. He promised a lot of dark humor and action, but also that he will stay true to the character of Venom. The most interesting thing to note was the mention of the Venom: Lethal Protector miniseries being the main inspiration for the film. This comic line from 1993 had Venom patrolling San Francisco, which he also confirmed as the films official setting. There he was forced to face the Life Foundation, who created new symbiote spawns Scream, Phage, Riot, Lasher, and Agony. To trim that storyline down the organization will most likely only create this version of Carnage, who is rumored to be the main villain in the film.

That is not all, as we also got our first look at an official logo and a V-logo, which shows off Venom’s potential design in the film. Lucky visitors of CCXP also got their hand on some t-shirts with an additional tagline for the film, which comic book fans will be happy to see.

If they do follow the Lethal Protector miniseries we will get his original design, but they might include different versions of him. He is a shape-shifting symbiote, so we might see the Agent Venom version when Brock is in control of the symbiote. Once he loses his composure it might try to take over and go on a rampage in his original comic form. This could be highlighted in the film’s tagline of “We are #Venom”. Some of the film’s conflicts and dark humor could be the result of Hardy playing a version of Brock that is fighting with multiple personality disorder as a result of bonding with Venom. If it does, in fact, take place in the MCU after all, as Hardy did mention “Marvel universe” in his short video from the film’s set, this would make it the first R-rated film in the franchise. Director Ruben Fleischer has a proven track record and Hardy is a fantastic actor. Hopefully, we will get a trailer or picture from the actor in his suit soon.

What are your thoughts on the film? Looking forward to it?

Source: ComicBookMovie.com (Venom Military Suit), ComicBook.com,

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