Tom Hardy’s superhero return in Venom: The Last Dance has not gone down well with critics, who branded the flick ‘appropriately awful’ in scathing reviews.
The final part of the Marvel trilogy is now in cinemas and saw the 47-year-old reprise his role as Eddie Brock, leading a star-studded cast including Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Stephen Graham.
In the sequel, both Eddie and Venom found themselves on the run and separately hunted by police for the death of Mulligan (Stephen) – while also having to fend off a team led by government official Rex Strickland (Chiwetel), and a suitably creepy Xenophage monster.
This all led to a quick jaunt around Las Vegas, where Tom expertly slipped into a suit, before a huge showdown at Area 51.
However, despite some blockbuster moments and iconic callbacks, director Kelly Marcel’s efforts to bring Venom’s story to a close have been with savage criticism from many.
One particularly brutal review suggested that it ‘rivals’ Joaquin Phoenix’s Joker 2 (Joker: Folie á Deux) as the worst superhero movie ever – after the latter was slated online.
The Last Dance currently boasts a critics score of 37% on Rotten Tomatoes, compared to a much higher audience ranking of 77%.
Andrew Parker from The Gate said of the action: ‘When Hardy is on screen, Venom: The Last Dance is a bad movie, but at least a palatable one. Whenever he’s not, it’s positively unbearable.’
Aisle Seat’s Mike McGranaghan agreed: ‘An appropriately awful finale to one of the worst movie trilogies ever.’
For CBR, Howard Waldstein fumed: ‘Venom 3 rivals Joker 2 for worst superhero movie of all time.’
Abby Olcese from the Pitch said: ‘In a series where messiness is encouraged, Venom: The Last Dance is unforgivably sloppy.’
As Fish Jelly Films’ Joseph Robinson added: ‘One would think “The Last Dance” implies a big climax.
‘Instead, we get a flaccid, predictable romp that seems to only exist to set up a fourth installment.’
The official synopsis reads: ‘In Venom: The Last Dance, Tom Hardy returns as Venom, one of Marvel’s greatest and most complex characters, for the final film in the trilogy.
‘Eddie and Venom are on the run. Hunted by both of their worlds and with the net closing in, the duo are forced into a devastating decision that will bring the curtains down on Venom and Eddie’s last dance.’
Tom first popped up as Eddie and Venom in the original movie, in 2018, alongside Riz Ahmed, Michelle Williams and Reid Scott.
This spawned the 2021 sequel, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, with The Last Dance serving as the final part of the trilogy.
Kelly previously touched on whether we could see more action from the Venom universe after the three-film contract came to an end.
‘You’d have to ask Sony, I don’t know,’ she said. ‘Yes, it is the end of a contract. We were asked to do three, we’ve delivered three, and who knows what the future holds.
‘I hope that we’ve laid groundwork for them in this third movie with other characters and other symbiotes and bad guys that they can run with, should they choose.
‘But this is the last one for Venom and Eddie.’