Venom began as one of Spider-Man’s deadliest villains, but over the past few decades he’s gone from a dark mirror image of Peter Parker to a protagonist in his own right. And as the anti-hero of his own story, Venom naturally has his own villains to face.
However, unlike Spider-Man, Venom’s rogues’ gallery isn’t exactly very extensive. Most of his enemies are other Symbiotes — take Riot from the first Venom movie, and of course Carnage from its sequel. But now that Venom has faced off against his most nefarious villain on the big screen, where else can his solo movies go from here?
Origin of the Species
The post-credits scene of Venom: Let There Be Carnage may provide a hint towards the future exploits of Tom Hardy’s Venom. Before Eddie Brock and his Symbiote are temporarily transported to the Marvel Cinematic Universe — an event that, thanks to Spider-Man: No Way Home, aduiences know to be the work of Doctor Strange’s magic — they first discuss the Venom Symbiote’s mysterious history. Venom briefly alludes to the existence of a Symbiote hive mind that spans the entire multiverse, a concept that’s never been explored before on film or in the comics. However, if future Venom films are indeed going to delve into the true nature of the Symbiotes, then there’s one major story from the comics that they could draw influence from.
The 2018-2021 run on Venom, written by Donny Cates with art by Ryan Stegman, did what no comic had done before and established a definitive origin for the alien Symbiotes that have so often menaced Spider-Man and his fellow heroes. In what begins as an ordinary adventure, Venom stumbles onto Grendel, a dragon-like Symbiote that served as the inspiration for the monster from the legend of Beowulf. But while this revelation is shocking enough on its own, Venom soon learns that Grendel is a servant of a greater evil: Knull, an ancient god of darkness who created the Symbiotes.
Knull is the living embodiment of the endless void that existed before the universe came into being, and he sees life as a desecration of his domain. In order to return all of reality to the darkness from whence it came, Knull declared war on life itself, and did battle against the Celestials. Knull even decapitated one Celestial, creating the severed head that would eventually become the spaceport Knowhere, as seen in Guardians of the Galaxy. After being driven back by the Celestials, Knull began to forge his living darkness into an army of monsters — the Symbiotes. The first of Knull’s Symbiotes was All-Black the Necrosword, the living weapon wielded by future Thor: Love and Thunder villain Gorr the God-Butcher. But of course, it was far from the last.
Initially, the Symbiotes were all mindless drones controlled by their creator, but after a battle between Grendel and Thor, the psychic link between Knull and his minions was severed, and they formed a hive mind of their own. Knull was swarmed and overtaken by his own creations, sealed inside a planet made from countless Symbiotes — Klyntar, named after the Symbiote word for “cage”. However, after Grendel’s return, Knull begins scheming to escape his prison and wage war against the universe once more.
The King in Black
After being freed from his imprisonment thanks to the machinations of Carnage, Knull eventually arrives on Earth in the King in Black storyline, the climax of Cates and Stegman’s run on Venom. Knull descends on New York with a seemingly endless army of Symbiotes in tow, including a trio of Symbiote-infected Celestials. All of Earth’s heroes band together to drive back the invasion, from the Avengers to the Fantastic Four to the X-Men — and of course, Spider-Man too. But even though King in Black features a massive cast of guest stars, it’s still a Venom story at its core, with Eddie Brock and his Symbiote being at the center of the narrative.
Despite the heroes’ best efforts, Knull and his legions conquer the Earth within mere minutes, blotting out the sky and enveloping the entire planet in a Symbiote prison. However, while everyone works together to turn the tide, it’s ultimately thanks to Venom that Knull is defeated and the world is saved. After spending the entire series wondering if he’s capable of truly changing his ways and becoming a good person, his victory against Knull proves once and for all that Venom has what it takes to be a real hero.
Due to King in Black’s nature as a crossover story, it may be a better fit for the Marvel Cinematic Universe than a standalone Venom film — an army of heroes teaming up against a Symbiote could easily make a perfect final Spider-Man film for the MCU. However, now that Carnage has come and gone, Tom Hardy’s Venom needs a new big bad if he’s going to return for another movie. And when it comes to Venom villains, they don’t get much bigger or badder than Knull.