'Venom' Movie Moving Forward

Looks like Columbia Pictures is still interested in moving forward with a Venom spin-off movie, as Variety reports that Gary Ross (Seabiscuit, Pleasantville) is in talks to rewrite and direct the movie. Ross, for those not aware, was the one the studio hired to re-write the latest draft of Spider-Man 4, due to begin production early next year with Sam Raimi, Tobey Maguire and Kristen Dunst all back for another (their last?) go-round.

Apparently the studio was so happy with the work Ross did on Spidey that they're now interested in having the guy rewrite and direct Venom, which we assume will follow the trials and tribulations of that black gooey alien entity that, when applied to a human's skin, turns them into either a vicious and violent monster or a fan of all things emo (or both!). The fact that Ross will be working on both Spidey 4 and Venom leads me to believe there might be some cross-over between the two, as that's all the rage right now and studios know how excited fans get when a character shows up in a movie he's not supposed to be in.

That being said, I still think this film is a bad idea. I don't think Venom is an appealing enough character to base an entire movie around, and that's mainly because his character was botched big time in Spider-Man 3. Could they turn it around? Perhaps. They could turn Venom into a sort of anti-hero, and have him (it?) do things like growl and screech -- but if he's not fighting Spider-Man, then who really cares? Needless to say I'm not putting this high up on my anticipation meter.

What do you think? Am I wrong? Is there enough here for a Venom spin-off movie? Would you see it?