Tom Hardy: Film industry is saturated with superheroes

Tom Hardy has said the film industry is “superhero-movie heavy” after starring in upcoming Marvel release Venom.

The film follows journalist Eddie Brock who is given superhuman powers by a ruthless alien creature, which forms a symbiotic relationship with him.

Hardy said that the darkness of his new role keeps the genre fresh in a marketplace “saturated” with superhero stories.

He added that superhero films had developed since he watched Batman and Spider-Man as a child, and revelled he was embracing his dark side for the role in Venom.

Hardy said: “It’s a development, a continuous progression of these symbolic heroes that we like.

“Obviously there’s a saturation at the moment, in the marketplace. We’re definitely superhero-movie heavy when you go to see big movies nowadays.

“What was nice about this one is it straddles the fence between the concept of what good and bad is and presents a flawed human being host to a flawed superhero.

“It’s definitely fresh for that, and that’s what’s exciting, as opposed to turning anything on its head. It’s not black and white, it’s about greys.

“And without wanting to be complex, it lays that out very simply. I’m flawed, I think we are all fundamentally flawed to some degree.

“And it’s about revelling in that, and embracing that, and identifying that.”

Hardy stars alongside Riz Ahmed and Michelle Williams in the Ruben Fleischer-directed film.

The character of Venom first appeared in comic books in 1984, and Hardy has said he is aware of fans’ expectations for the character.

However, he said: “I have to be real and say, ‘I’m here to do a job and my job-specific is to serve this company, this script, this character’.”

He added that grappling with the alternating characters of Brock and Venom was “a playground to have fun with”.

Venom is released in cinemas on Wednesday, October 3.