Will Venom join upcoming ‘Spider-Man’ movies?

Among the many different anti-hero stories that are getting ample screen time in the theaters (Harley Quinn, Deadpool, Black Adam, etc.), Venom was one of the first to blaze the trail under the new model of comic book movie. Tom Hardy’s portrayal of lovable loser turned vigilante Eddie Brock was a fresh take on the character, proving to be divisive. 

Now that a sequel has hit the theaters, the future of the franchise is in question. With the character’s origins based in the Spider-Man comics, one can’t help but wonder if Sony and Disney will agree to bring these two Marvel properties together. With the end of the Homecoming trilogy being hinted at by Tom Holland, is Venom the new future? Will Venom join the upcoming Spider-Man movies?

Venom

Eddie Brock is a failed reporter raised by a father who blamed him for his mother’s death in childbirth. As he was about to give up his fledgling career as a journalist, he intercepted a letter from someone claiming to be the serial killer, Sin-Eater. Breaking the story was the boost his career needed until Spider-Man caught the real Sin-Eater, making Brock a laughing stock. 

He went to a church to ask God for forgiveness when a symbiote left behind by Spider-Man sensed his anger and bonded with Brock. Feeding on the anger they both had for Spider-Man, Venom became a supervillain. After countless battles, Spider-Man saved someone dear to Brock, and the two created a begrudging truce. 

At one point, Brock was in prison with a serial killer named Cletus Kasady; the two developed an intense hatred toward each other, prompting Kasady to attempt to murder Brock. A piece of the symbiote bonded with Kasady, and the two became a more vicious symbiotic relationship, calling themselves Carnage. 

Carnage was more powerful than Spider-Man & Venom individually, but together they were able to defeat Kasady. The two of them working together was a defining point in Venom’s character that would eventually lead him to work as an anti-hero . . . and ultimately a full-fledged hero in his own right. 

Venom movies

Like all movie adaptations, the films took a few liberties on the origin story. The most considerable liberty they took was the creation of Venom and his work as a vigilante without the presence of Spider-Man. The first movie, Venom (2018), saw Tom Hardy as a down-on-his-luck reporter that ultimately becomes the symbiote and battles another named Riot. 

The sequel, Venom: Let There Be Carnage, saw Brock trying to get his life together and deal with living as one half of the superbeing known as Venom. Cletus Kasady requests Brock to interview him and tell his story to the world. Kasady attacks and bites Brock during the interview, allowing the symbiote to bond with him, becoming Carnage. 

The end credit scene attached to the second of the Venom movies sets up the future of the franchise in a way that Marvel fans will likely be excited about. As Brock is relaxing in a beach resort, the room around him changes, becoming an unknown place. The news on the TV reports the true identity of Spider-Man as Peter Parker. It uses the footage from the climax of Spider-Man: Far From Home. 

Implications and questions

The first reaction for Spider-Man/Venom fans was overwhelmingly positive, as they will get to see Tom Holland’s Spider-Man go toe to toe with Tom Hardy’s Venom. This was something audiences have been calling for since Venom was released in 2018. The implication is that Hardy’s Venom is now a part of the MCU . . . but what does that mean?

Some have asked if Spider-Man and Venom will get the chance to do epic battle as they did in the comics. Venom is by-in-large a hero in the film universe after all, so what would transpire to cause them to be at odds? Another question asked is how do they come together, now that Brock has already dispatched Kasady? Will the movies find another villain more powerful than Carnage for them to defeat together?

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Are you excited about the prospect of seeing Hardy’s Venom in the MCU? Do you think he will find the true villain status the previous Venom movies ignored? Or do you think we will see more of a team-up in the future?