Venom: The Last Dab?
A look back at advertising the last instalment of Sony’s Venom-verse…
This one excites me both as a geek (if you couldn’t tell) and media planner, because there are so many advertising examples from the theatrical release!
To break down the advertising for “Venom: The Last Dance”, I first need to examine a few key aspects of the marketing campaign:
Talent-Focused Video Advertising
Cross-Promotional Collaborations
Out-Of-Home Advertising
Franchise Momentum
Targeted Marketing
Talent-Focused Video Advertising
The film has leveraged its star power pretty damn well through the video content they released:
↳ Tom Hardy Prominence: As the lead actor, Tom Hardy featured in promotional videos. Capitalising on both his popularity as a person and his character Eddie Brock. I can only imagine how fun the content day would’ve been for this one! I only recently got to jump into my first one for 2 major releases this year and I loved it!
↳ Character Dynamic: The advertising emphasised the unique dynamic between Eddie Brock and venom, showcasing their comedic interactions and banter. Hardy embodied this role which allowed for that dynamic to work so well. Plus, for someone who doesn’t share too much, he did a good job of using his Instagram to spread awareness. He’s like those Dad’s who don’t use social media often. But, when they do, it’s to share their random photos either of the kids or them doing something they find fun.
↳ Influencer Marketing: It’s fair to say that Sony reached into their deep pockets for this last film. Like, look at the amount of bespoke content they created to promote the film. Take the following examples to understand what I mean:
↳ Megan Thee Stallion: This one I did not expect. But, I guess after seeing the film and the She-Hulk Marvel Studios TV show, it kinda makes sense… The short-form video collab which you can find here has 5.2M (yes million) comments. So, to say that went viral is an understatement right?
↳ Busta Rhymes: Here’s annother example of pushing your IP to the limits on a content day. When I saw this come up in my feed I wasn’t too sure what to expect. Yet, I was pretty surprised and see the vision. It’s another way to tap into an audience of fans who share similar interests. With rappers usually referencing comic books and being fans themselves. It’s easy to pull the two together. If you want to see that video, check it out here.
Cross-Promotional Collaborations
While this is like the previous category, the difference is the collaboration between the brands. Plus, it’s also a personal fave of mine I wanted to highlight:
UFC Tie-In: Sony was able to do a partnership promotion with the UFC. Which involved Eddie paying a visit to Dana White at the UFC office. Where he was looking for cash & willing to fight anyone on the roster. Then bumping into Sean O’Malley (the then Bantamweight champ). Too which we then find Eddie to have O’Malley in a rear naked choke (paying homage to one of Hardy’s favourite past times). All in all, a fun piece of video content. Created to contextually target the movies target demographic through a very popular medium!
Hot Ones Collaboration: This was the most notable ‘fame’ driving piece of promotional content used to promote the film. The humorous video featured Venom on the popular "Hot Ones" show. Therefore, tapping into internet culture, further highlighting the popularity of the show and capturing the franchise in its ridiculousness.
This is unrelated, but just look at this trend they also jumped on lol
Other Merchandise/Collabs: From limited edition HJC Venom helmets to popcorn buckets. Sony let their partnerships team loose to strike some brilliant promotional deals to sell the film and the various products that followed. Take a look at these examples:
That NFL tie-in
The brilliant promo posters that came out
and the Opera GX collab to name a few!
Sony understood how to extend Venom's reach beyond moviegoers by creating products that appealed to superfans.
Out-of-Home Advertising
The out-of-home (OOH) campaign for "Venom: The Last Dance" was notable:
↳ Strategic Placements: A variety of formats and locations were used to promote the film. With large formats including: billboards, bus T-sides, tube sheets and more. Placed in high-traffic areas across major cities internationally. Sony again pulled out magical numbers to have their film dominate huge, unmissable, and ‘fame’ driving formats. Like I’m not being funny, but do you know how much some of these OOH locations cost? (If you don’t know, get to know!)
↳ Visuals: Although Sony were able to dominate these outdoor formats to spread mass awareness. It looks like they spent most of their creative efforts on creating bespoke digital content & their partnerships. Because from what I can tell, most of these placements outdoor included the same creative, see below:
Franchise Momentum
The advertising capitalised on the success & affinity of the previous Venom films:
Trilogy Finale: As this was the concluding film to the trilogy. The marketing emphasised that to create a sense of urgency for fans to see how the story ends. Taglines like "Till death do they part" prominently featured in the promotional material.
Box Office Performance: The film exceeded expectations with a $139M domestic box office, surpassing predictions but coming in as the lowest performing film in the franchise. Although it had a low domestic start, internationally it performed very well and was still profitable.
Fan & Critical Reception: Although the film had charisma, it struggled with a convoluted and ambitious storyline. But, still ended up being an enjoyable watch for fans and had us waiting for the post-credits scene!
Targeted Marketing
Then lastly, the key to any effective advertising, is tailoring it towards specific audiences:
Comic Book Fans:
A given really, as this is a comic book movie first and foremost. Therefore, leveraging mediums comic fans often use to advertise the final film was pivotal. This would have involved print/digital promo within comics, bespoke content created and shared on channels they would often interact with (Fandom, IGN, and more), Sony PlayStation partnerships (banners across the main Home Screen), and so much more.
Action Movie Enthusiasts:
Trailers and TV spots highlighted intense action sequences, showcasing improved CGI and practical effects. An example piece of content tapping into this, was a behind-the-scenes video focusing on stunt work which released exclusively on YouTube.
Comedy Lovers:
A series of short, humorous clips featuring Venom in everyday situations (like trying to cook or use social media) were released on social platforms. The film's marketing leaned heavily into the odd-couple dynamic between Eddie and Venom, emphasising the comedic elements alongside the action. If you want effective advertising, where it permits use humour, it’s proven to have very positive effects and improve performance!
This multi-faceted approach allowed "Venom: The Last Dance" to appeal to a wide range of audiences, contributing to its box office success and cultural impact.
I hope you enjoyed this breakdown of Venom: The Last Dance’s theatrical marketing and you found something interesting you might use in your future campaigns!