'Venom 2' Cast Hoping To Add Naomie Harris As Supervillainess Shriek

The other day word broke that the Venom 2 cast was adding another villain alongside Woody Harrelson's Carnage: Shriek, a character who is Carnage's love interest in the comics. Now we know who will be playing the character (probably): Naomie Harris. Harris is in talks to join the film opposite Harrelson, Tom Hardy, and Michelle Williams, with Andy Serkis directing.

Variety has the scoop on Naomie Harris playing Shriek (not to be confused with Shrek) in Venom 2. In the comics Shriek has the ability to manipulate sound, and also (per Wikipedia) "shield herself with a sonic field, and shoot sonic energy blasts from her hands" as well as the ability "to tap into people's minds and bring out their inner darkness (fear, anger, hate) making them act violent." Her real name is Frances Louise Barrison.

In the comics, Shriek teams up with Carnage and the two become romantically paired. Whether or not that romance will carry over into the movie remains to be seen, but it's safe to assume Harris' Shriek will team up with Harrelson's Carnage and his glorious clown wig. Tom Hardy will be back as Eddie Brock/Venom, and Michelle Williams is set to return as Anne Weying. Andy Serkis is directing the sequel, taking over from Venom director Ruben Fleischer.

Critics were not very kind to Venom when it hit theaters last year, but audiences couldn't get enough of the Spider-Man spin-off, helping to turn the flick into a box office smash. It ended up being the seventh-highest-grossing film of 2018, taking in $856 million worldwide. That's the type of money that guarantees a sequel, critics be damned.

The first Venom is very, very silly, but I'll admit to being entertained – primarily by Hardy's genuinely strange go-for-broke performance. While I have no expectations of Venom 2 to be a great movie, I do think that handing the material over to Serkis is a good step. Adding Harris to the cast is a good move as well. She's been doing solid work for years in films like 28 Days Later, Skyfall, and Moonlight. This year she'll be seen in the film Black and Blue, and she's returning to the Bond franchise yet again for next year's No Time to Die.

Venom 2 is set to open in October of 2020.