Tom Hardy fans: As you already know, Tom was in town to shoot Marvel’s new film Venom. We found someone who crossed paths with the British superstar on Thursday on the Embarcadero right by the Hi Dive Bar.
Alan Sincich posted a selfie with the supervillain on Reddit.
Here’s how Sincich describes the magical moment to NBC Bay Area- How I Met Your Mother style:
Kids... let me tell you about when I met one of the nicest supervillains of all time...
It all started in January of 2018 when I decided to tackle my New Year's resolution by joining a running club, the San Francisco Roadrunners. It was a Wednesday, but I noticed on their calendar that the next day they were having a happy hour at a bar along the Embarcadero called Hi Dive.
Now, in my head, I thought, "What a great opportunity to meet some new people!" I simply thought I'd take a leap of faith to meet some of my new running club mates... but I had no idea what that night had in store for me.
So after work, I went for my usual Thursday night run along the Embarcadero down to Ghirardelli Square and back towards our GetAccept office near ATT Park. I had planned to stop by the happy hour on my way back since it was along the way. As I got near the bar, I noticed there were cameras, lights, and a crew all being set up, but it didn't look like they had begun filming yet.
Local
As I entered Hi Dive, I was immediately greeted by some members of the club. It was probably easy for them to spot me as I was in all of my running gear and sweating up a storm. So I grabbed a drink, introduced myself to a bunch of great people, and chatted for a good hour or so.
Now, as I began to leave the bar, I overhear some people talking about how Tom Hardy was filming for the movie Antidote right outside, which of course grabbed my attention. I thought it was pretty cool that he was somewhere outside filming, but I simply had no idea what was to come in the next few moments...
I noticed there was a security guard standing outside the entrance of the bar, so I figured they had begun filming and he was "directing traffic." I waited for a few moments until he opened the door.
Immediately he asked, "Where are you going?" A bit confused and unsettled by the question, I blankly stared and answered, "Home." I think he was a little embarrassed as he quickly apologized and said, "Oh, of course, my bad, brotha!" and let me through the exit.
What I walked out to seemed like madness, though I'm sure it was industry standard. The crew and equipment covered the whole sidewalk, and I saw everyone ready for action; the boom guy, cameraman, actors and actresses, but alas, no Tom Hardy.
I start walking through the mayhem of people, a bit behind where they were shooting and began blinding shuffling through my music. Then all of a sudden I looked up... and who did I see?
The man, the myth, the legend, Edward Thomas Hardy.
Noticing that he glanced at me, I began walking toward him, all while trying to keep it cool, and said, “Oh, snap! Tom Hardy! How you doin, man?”
To which he replied, "Doin great, bud! What's your name?" Feeling the warm welcome, I walked over, shook his hand, and introduced myself.
I got the impression he was down to chat for at least a second, so I confirmed with him that they were filming Antidote (which I later found out is the working title for Venom), mentioned I love his work, from Inception to Peaky Blinders, and politely asked for a picture with him, which he kindly agreed to without hesitation.
So, I eagerly took out my phone, went to my camera for a selfie, began to pose with him, and what did I do? I clicked the wrong button turning my phone off, leaving me picture-less, and feeling like a dweeb... in front of TOM HARDY.
Now luckily, we both laughed it off and he mentioned that it happens all the time.
We retook the picture, I said to him, “Really appreciate it and can’t wait to see the film!” and proceeded to not geek out as I walked away.
I mean, come on, he’s a Batman and now Spider-Man villain for goodness sake! I remember thinking, "This man is going to be able to claim to be both Bane and Venom, possibly the two coolest, most relentless, and menacing super-villains in comic book history!" And the funniest part was, he seemed like the nicest guy in the world! And no... I don't think he was just acting.
Now kids, as I hope you know, I try to live my life with no regrets. However, looking back, I wish I'd taken more time to talk with him because, honestly, what did I have to lose?
If I had, I would have asked him a question that I had been tackling in my own life at the time.
"What drives you to keep reaching for success? People always talk about their 'why' or their purpose in life, but what steps did you take to figure it out? You went through some tough times before becoming the man you are today, so how did you become aware and motivate yourself to turn your life around and become the best version of yourself?”
I think this is a question we all need to face at some point in our lives, and mentorship is always a great guide through life.
