If you are still questioning whether or not a film universe full of Spider-Man villains and supporting characters could work without Spider-Man himself, don’t worry, we are too. Venom will still be a story about Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) and his relationship with the alien symbiote. And yet, we know none of that would have ever happened without Spider-Man. But as Marvel and Sony agreed to keep those two worlds separate, it looks like Sony plans on expanding the Spider-Man-less universe by having Venom appear in other films.

Director Ruben Fleischer took some time off his busy schedule to talk about Venom, and he dropped some hints about the character’s future and possible cameos. More on the story, below.

In an interview with Empire, Fleischer assured fans that this would be Venom’s film. No Spider-Man. Just the anti-hero with a penchant for kills. He also hinted that Venom could have cameos in other films:

This quote comes at a somewhat bad time. Sony recently took Silver and Black off their release schedule. But it seems to hint at the fact that we may actually see Spider-Man, despite repeated denials. Of course, self-censorship make sense since he doesn’t want to spoil anything. And if Spider-Man did show up – and we are not saying he will – but if he did, spoiling it now would just ruin everything about Venom. Which doesn’t have a lot going for it now – especially with the lukewarm reception those trailers got.

But let’s remember that Sony has been trying to launch their Spider-Man spinoffs since The Amazing Spider-Man 2. That film featured one too many Easter Eggs. But before everything fell apart and Sony was forced to share Spider-Man with Marvel, they wanted to have a Sinister Six film, a Venom film, and a silly Aunt May film – yes, this was a joke, but still, it’s funny to mention.

I’m guessing if Venom does appear in any future Spider-Man-less universe films, other than his own, Venom would have to do well at the box office or exceed expectations. So we will keep a close watch as that universe continues to develop.

[Source: Empire via ComicBookMovie.com]