The guy playing Sandman doesn't bother me too much. Topher Grace as Venom is sort of confusing though. I mean Eddie Brock (at least as far as my recollection goes) was usually bigger than Peter Parker (both in height and in build). Topher Grace those is a skinny stick guy. *shrugs* I guess we'll see how it plays out though.
Posted by T_Smith (Member # 3734) on :
It depends. I am really, really unsure of Topher Grace, but the kid can act. It would require a LOT of bulking up, and a very thorough makeup/hair job.
Posted by Megan (Member # 5290) on :
Well...Tobey Maguire did buff all up for the movies to begin with. Who knows?
And I agree with T; the boy is actually a pretty good actor.
I'm really, really, really skeptical of Thomas Haden Church as anything other than comedian, though. He was Lowell on Wings, for heaven's sake.
Posted by Enigmatic (Member # 7785) on :
I can see Church as Sandman, he has the right physicality and a good face to go with my image of the character. He displayed a pretty impressive acting range in Sideways, so I think he can do it.
Topher does seem kind of skinny for Venom/Brock, but perhaps he can bulk up for it. It's hard to judge because the only thing I've seen him in he's a nice, shy, kinda nerdy guy... way too similar to what you'd think of for Peter Parker, not Brock. I have faith in Sam Raimi though, and am sure he's making these casting choices for a reason.
--Enigmatic
Posted by Parsimony (Member # 8140) on :
I can see Lowell as Sandman. That's fine with me. Topher though...I just don't imagine him as being intimidating. I mean, Venom was, to me anyway, the scariest character from the Spider Man mythology. Topher is too nice and dweeby. Can he possibly be scary?
--ApostleRadio
Posted by pfresh85 (Member # 8085) on :
The only one scarier than Venom is Carnage. Venom at least is somewhat human (and can be talked into doing the right thing occasionally). Carnage is just pure evil.
Posted by T_Smith (Member # 3734) on :
What I'm really afraid of is the costume. I mean, can you imagine a real life Venom talking without it looking like Power Rangers? In the first film, the costume was a simple mask, that didn't talk. In the second, the villian was a person. The character of venom has great potential, but the visual aspect of it is a great challenge.
Posted by Aeroth (Member # 6269) on :
Doesn't bother me too much. I figure: out of all the possible ways that the movies can be untrue to the comics, turning a big guy to an average-size guy isn't too dreadful.
And Church as Sandman was an excellent decision. Overall, it should be fun to watch Spidey tackle two villains at once in a movie.
I'm one of those guys that's not always enthusiastic about seeing CGI take over movies, but I'm highly hoping that the Venom costume will be completely composed of special effects.
Posted by Enigmatic (Member # 7785) on :
I'm hoping for good liquidy tendril effects for the on and off of the Venom costume. It's usually drawn wrapping around someone in such a cool fluid sort of way that I hope they can capture in the film.
That was one of the many, many dissappointments of the Spawn movie, btw. The way they did the symbiotic costume in that was quite lame.
--Enigmatic
Posted by neo-dragon (Member # 7168) on :
It's been suggested that they may be going with something like the "Ultimate Spider-man" rendition of Venom. In that series, Eddie Brock is a geek like Peter was, and the symbiote isn't an alien, but the result of a failed science experiment, which incidently, was based on the work of Eddie and Peter's deceased fathers. Anyhow, that's why a scrawny actor would play Eddie.
Posted by pfresh85 (Member # 8085) on :
Well I guess that'd be a simpler way to explain it (since the original story of the source of the Venom symbiote is sort of long).