Working toward an October 15, 2018 release, Sony Pictures' standalone Venom movie should be moving into production in the next few months. And when it does, don't be surprised if you see evidence of Riz Ahmed’s presence on the set!

Variety reported that the actor, who starred in last year's Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and Jason Bourne, is in early negotiations to join lead actor Tom Hardy in the upcoming Ruben Fleischer venture. While the outlet didn’t reveal his prospective role, it did suggest that if things work out, he’ll portray a "popular Marvel Comics character".

So far, Sony hasn't commented, but The Hollywood Reporter recently confirmed that Ahmed is in talks to star in Venom. Like Variety, they had no specific information about the character. But they learned from insiders that it won’t be Carnage, despite the fact that it was reported a couple of months ago that the supervillain would appear. According to the outlet, the 34-year-old Ahmed was once considered for that role, but the script later underwent some changes.

Justin Kroll, who wrote the report for Variety, took to Twitter to add that Ahmed has some competition in Matt Smith (Doctor Who), Pedro Pascal (Game of Thrones), and Matthias Schoenaerts (The Danish Girl). So the role isn’t a sure thing for the British Pakistani actor yet.

Apart from the aforementioned movies, Ahmed also impressed with his lead role in HBO's The Night Of, for which he won a Golden Globe, a Primetime Emmy, and a SAG nomination. His other notable credits include Four Lions, Centurion, The Reluctant Fundamentalist, and Nightcrawler.

What do you think about the latest Venom casting update? Share via comments, and stay tuned for the latest tidbits!