Why are Lady Gaga fans trolling 'Venom' on Twitter?

Lady Gaga fans are using Twitter bots to troll Sony Pictures’ new superhero film Venom, according to a Buzzfeed News report.

Passionate Gaga fans are said to be targeting Tom Hardy’s new film because it’s being released on the same day as the singer’s new musical A Star Is Born.

Marvel fans were the first to flag the coordinated attack against Venom after bots (fake Twitter users) were seen posting identical tweets calling the Spider-Man spin-off “the worst movie this year”.

One Gaga fan claimed responsibility for the anti-Venom tweets telling Buzzfeed News the attack against Venom was designed to give A Star Is Born, directed by Bradley Cooper, a better chance at the box office.

“It’s us Gaga fans creating fake ids to trash Venom premiere,” they said. “They both are getting released on the same day so we want more audience for A Star Is Born.”

As the report explains, Lady Gaga fans – known as Little Monsters – have history of coordinating online attacks against public figures, including one against singer Ed Sheeran who quit Twitter after being targeted by Gaga fans.

The ‘Galway Girl’ singer was singled out for abuse after fans thought he’d criticised Lady Gaga in a Beats 1 Radio interview.

Some have blamed the negative tweets on disgruntled DC fans, although many DC fans deny their involvement.

Although it’s not Lady Gaga’s acting debut, A Star Is Born is the ‘Bad Romance’ singer’s biggest role to date, and it’s earned rave reviews on the festival circuit. It’s being talked about as a genuine Oscar contender, but the same can’t be said about Venom.

Reviews for the Spider-Man spin-off are embargoed until tomorrow – release day – which is always a worrying sign, and early reactions from the film’s Hollywood premiere are decidedly mixed.

Venom and A Star Is Born both arrive in UK cinemas on 3 October.

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