Andy Serkis is no stranger to comic book movies having previously played the delightful Ulysses Klaue in Avengers: Age of Ultron and Black Panther. Now he’ll step behind the camera for one as THR reports that Serkis has signed on to direct Venom 2. We previously reported that Serkis, Travis Knight (Bumblebee), and Rupert Wyatt (Rise of the Planet of the Apes) were in the running for the gig, but it looks like Serkis won the job. This will be Serkis’ third feature following Breathe and Mowgli.

I think Serkis is a solid choice for the gig, and it’s clear that Sony’s priority was to strike while the iron was hot. Venom raked in $856 million worldwide off a budget of $100 million, so it was a major hit for the studio even though they couldn’t rely on Spider-Man for a boost. There’s no word yet on whether or not Spider-Man will be a part of the sequel (it seems unlikely at this point, but I wouldn’t rule it out entirely), but based on the stinger from Venom, it looks like the plot will revolve around Venom and Carnage (Woody Harrelson, who previously worked with Serkis on War for the Planet of the Apes).

I’m curious to see how, if at all, Venom 2 will differ from the first movie. I'm assuming Sony wants to keep it PG-13, and it’s hard to point out a real stamp Ruben Fleischer left on the first movie. It's also difficult to pin down a signature for Serkis, who did the drama Breathe and the incredibly dark adaptation of The Jungle Book with Mowgli. So what does Venom 2 even look like? I can't really say, although I think we can rest assured that Tom Hardy will bring his signature brand of weirdness back to the role and have more conversations with himself.