Sony released the final trailer for their upcoming finale in the Venom trilogy today. And while the new look at the film didn’t give away too much, it did tease (and even give us a first glimpse of) a major villain from relatively recent Marvel Comics.
In the new trailer, which can be seen below, Venom explains that his home has found them and even refers to “my creator.” We also hear a scientist (played by Juno Temple) say “the symbiotes didn’t come here by accident, they were running.”
We then get a glimpse of a place that appears to be overrun with symbiotes as we approach what appears to be a man sitting on a throne. Eventually, we get a brief close-up shot of that mystery “man.”
Finally, Eddie asks Venom about his creator’s name. It’s unclear if Venom actually utters the real name of the character or if he simply says “no,” because when Eddie echoes him, the symbiote silences his host. It appears he doesn’t want the name spoken aloud. And that name would be none other than Knull.
Knull, also known as the King in Black, was introduced for a 2020 crossover storyline titled “King in Black.” The god of the symbiotes, Knull created the alien race as a living weapon at the dawn of time. In the comics, Knull looks to reclaim what is rightfully his and wages war on Earth, bringing with him an army of symbiotes. The result is the planet being fully encased in symbiote and an epic battle between the King in Black and Earth’s mightiest heroes. Consequently, it also resulted in maybe the best crossover story arc Marvel has produced in years.
Unfortunately, the “King in Black” story will have to be drastically changed for this film, because I would not expect to see Spider-Man, Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, the X-Men, the Fantastic Four or any other beloved her you can name in this film.
So instead, expect to see a nerfed version of the villain take on Venom, perhaps with the help of some other symbiotes. What was an epic comic book story arc will likely be simplified into a watered down, possibly rushed finale for a trilogy that noticeably lost steam after a relatively strong start.
Best case scenario? This film will simply introduce Knull in a way that will still allow Marvel to bring him into the MCU in the future without fans being immediately turned off by the idea. I wouldn’t bet on that though.
Sony’s Venom: The Last Dance will hit theaters on October 25.