While Knull will appear in Venom: The Last Dance, it seems this is only the beginning for the Marvel villain. Despite being a relatively new character, created in 2018, Knull has become one of the most powerful and fearsome foes in Marvel Comics. Also known as God of the Symbiotes and The King in Black, Knull is an Elder God who created the symbiotes as a weapon to spread his influence across the cosmos. A recent Venom: The Last Dance trailer revealed Knull would be a threat in the film, but new reports suggest he will be more than a one-and-done villain.
While speaking with IGN, Venom: The Last Dance director Kelly Marcel revealed that Sony seems to have big plans for Knull and that his role in the upcoming Venom film is just the beginning. She also seemingly implies that Eddie Brock/Venom will not come face to face with Knull in the film, and that the villain will be controlling the threat from behind the scenes. It appears that Knull is being positioned as a Thanos-level threat for Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, and like the Mad Titan, the King in Black’s story will be developed over the years. Marcel said:
“We’re in spoiler territory now and we hope some of the fun of watching this movie is not knowing what will happen, but trust me, we know full well how important Knull is to the fans, so just as we laid a foundation for Venom, we hope we are doing the same for Knull. The King in Black is way too powerful for ‘one and done.’ This film introduces Knull, but it just touches the beginnings of his story. Marvel’s greatest film villains are developed over time. Here, Knull is the threat lurking behind the danger that tests the absolute limits of Eddie and Venom’s partnership — but it’s their relationship that remains the heart of this story.”
While Venom: The Last Dance is being sold as the final Venom movie, a point Tom Hardy has repeated, that doesn’t mean it is the end of the character. Similar to how Robert Downey Jr. continued to reprise his role as Iron Man in the MCU as a supporting character following Iron Man 3, Venom could do the same. There is also the possibility that Venom’s symbiote could bond with another host as he does in the comics. With the Venom movies being the only successful spin-offs in Sony’s Spider-Man universe, if they want to build up to Knull as a future threat, they will certainly want to keep Venom around.
The King in Black
Since Sony Pictures announced they were making films based on Spider-Man villains and supporting characters, everyone has been trying to guess the eventual crossover/team-up film. The Sinister Six has long been the most likely option, but who would they fight? Spider-Man appears to be off the table as the character’s MCU contract with Disney seemingly prevents Sony from using him in films like Venom, Morbius, or Madame Web. Knull, however, provides a large-scale threat that could unite Venom, Morbius, Kraven the Hunter, Madame Web, and her three Spider-Women.
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The 2020-2021 Marvel Comic event King in Black could provide the perfect springboard for a crossover between Sony’s disconnected films. The comic sees Knull lead a large-scale symbiote invasion of Earth with Venom and the Avengers left to defend it. Sony could sub out the Avengers with the Sinister Six and finally unite all of their different characters while possibly redeeming others, like Morbius and Madame Web, from their cinematic disappointments. It will be interesting to see if Sony continues with this plan, because if Kraven the Hunter disappoints at the box office, they might scrap their long-term plans, and Knull join Darkseid and Kang the Conqueror as once-planned cinematic big bads that went nowhere.
- Release Date
- October 25, 2024
- Studio(s)
- Columbia Pictures , Marvel Entertainment , Pascal Pictures