Sony and director Andy Serkis have tapped Oscar-winning cinematographer Robert Richardson to shoot Venom 2 starring Tom Hardy, Collider has confirmed.

Richardson is coming off of Quentin Tarantino's Sony hit Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, and he previously worked with Serkis on his 2017 directorial debut Breathe. He has won a trio of Oscars for his work on JFK, The Aviator and Hugo, and has six other nominations to his name, including three for Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained and The Hateful Eight. Another nomination is expected to be in the cards for Richardson given his exceptional work on Once Upon a Time, which has grossed $106 million at the domestic box office thus far.

Serkis signed on to direct Venom 2 just last week, and while you don't often see a cinematographer board a project so soon after its director, Richardson's hiring indicates that Sony is eager to get moving on the symbiote sequel after the first film grossed $856 million worldwide in October 2018.

Michelle Williams is expected to return for the sequel, which is expected to give much more screen time to Woody Harrelson's villainous Carnage, who we saw behind bars at the end of the first film. Venom scribe Kelly Marcel returned to pen the sequel.

In addition to shooting Tarantino's Kill Bill films and Martin Scorsese's underrated Casino, Richardson is well known for his work with director Oliver Stone, including Natural Born Killers, which featured multiple kinds of film stock and a dizzying array of stunning shots. I was also very impressed by his visceral work in last year's indie drama A Private War starring Rosamund Pike and Jamie Dornan. Richardson is represented by Iconic Talent Agency, and the Hollywood Reporter broke the news of his hiring.