As a longtime fanatic of all things Marvel, I must say that the latest Venom installment, “The Last Dance,” has left me with a peculiar sense of anticipation and a lingering feeling of unfinished business. The movie, as we know, is supposed to be the concluding chapter in the Venom saga, but with the intriguing post-credits scenes hinting at potential future appearances, it’s hard not to feel a twinge of excitement.
Contains spoilers for “Venom: The Last Dance”
It’s quite remarkable how we managed to see a complete trilogy for the “Venom” series on the big screen before “Grand Theft Auto 6” has been released. The Sony Spider-Man Universe, centered around Eddie Brock and his antiheroic symbiote, portrayed by Tom Hardy, stands strong despite the absence of Spider-Man himself in the stories. Even though Spider-Man isn’t present in “The Last Dance,” there are many exciting elements for dedicated fans of this character and franchise to enjoy.
In the story, Knull, the deity of darkness and originator of the symbiotes, is jailed and longs to break free using a specific codex. Happily for him, this crucial artifact is tucked away within Eddie Brock/Venom, making them a prime target. This attracts the attention of Knull’s terrifying creatures called xenophages. On the run, Eddie encounters various challenges, including General Rex Strickland (played by Chiwetel Ejiofor), who is determined to safeguard Earth, and Dr. Teddy Payne (Juno Temple), who wishes to investigate the symbiotes. During his journey, Eddie crosses paths with a laid-back family who offer him a glimpse of the life he could have led if he hadn’t chosen the path of the “lethal protector.
In “Venom: The Last Dance,” not only do comic book allusions abound, but also hints at Venom’s upcoming storyline may be subtly included. It’s worth taking a second look at the movie to appreciate these intricacies and better understand how it all ties together.
Eddie Brock gets a recap
In the initial scene of “Venom: The Last Dance,” the audience gets introduced to Knull. Meanwhile, within the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Eddie Brock remains at a bar, seemingly being briefed on recent events over the past few years, including references to a purple alien and precious stones. However, Eddie emphasizes that aliens are not concerned with stones; instead, he refers to one particular alien who seems more fascinated by human intelligence.
Cristo Fernández, the bartender, firmly maintains that what he’s saying is true, since his family vanished for five years during the Blip. This conversation seems familiar, reminiscent of a discussion Eddie had in the post-credits scene of “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” Of course, that scene hinted at the introduction of the symbiote into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as we later observe a trace of Venom’s substance lingering after Eddie was pulled back to his own universe.
It seems like Eddie finds himself in a universe with a bartender sporting a unique hairdo, and it isn’t long before Venom contributes another blob of goo to the bar that eventually catches Strickland’s attention. We have a hunch that these mysterious blobs of goo could play significant roles as we move forward in both the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the Sony-verse.
Even Venom’s done with the multiverse
For quite some time, there’s been discussion about growing weary of superheroes. Whether we’ve truly reached this stage or not is debatable, but it seems some audiences might be feeling exhausted by the multiverse theme. The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is currently in its Multiverse Story Arc, heading towards “Avengers: Secret Wars,” and the same idea has been employed in the animated “Spider-Verse” films as well as the DC Extended Universe. We’ve officially arrived at a point where these superhero movies are cognizant of many people feeling burnt out on the trope, but this doesn’t indicate that production companies will stop producing them any time soon.
During the summer of 2024, I found myself thoroughly enjoying the banter between Deadpool and Wolverine. Wade Wilson (Ryan Reynolds) was particularly vocal about his disdain for the multiverse, expressing it quite explicitly. Now, it seems Venom is joining in on the fun. In the beginning of their movie, Eddie is casually mixing a drink at the bar, and the symbiote chimes in with its own thoughts, expressing exasperation about this “multiverse nonsense.
It appears that these multiverse jokes serve as a method for studios to have their cake and eat it too. They understand that this trope is becoming tiresome, yet they continue to use it because it provides an effortless means to include appearances from various franchises. If Venom finds the multiverse exhausting after just one trip to another dimension, it makes one wonder how viewers feel when almost every superhero series explores it.
Some familiar Marvel faces show up
As a gamer, I was left scratching my head when I watched the trailer for “Venom: The Last Dance”. What puzzled me most were familiar faces like Chiwetel Ejiofor and Rhys Ifans, who’ve both graced Marvel properties before. Ejiofor, remember him as Baron Mordo from the Doctor Strange films? And Ifans, he played Dr. Curt Connors aka The Lizard in The Amazing Spider-Man. Fan theories flew about, suggesting that perhaps Ejiofor was a variant of Mordo for Venom 3. But alas, it turns out that’s not the case.
In the movie “Venom,” Ejiofor portrays an entirely new character, given that this story takes place in a universe distinct from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). Coincidentally, his character, Strickland, bears a resemblance to Mordo. However, since Strickland meets his end by the film’s finale, it’s unlikely we’ll see him acquiring magical abilities in future Sony-Verse films and transforming into Mordo.
As a devoted fan, I can’t help but find the casting of Jamie Bell in this upcoming project intriguing. His connection to the Spider-Man universe isn’t just casual; it seems deeply rooted. Fueling the speculations among us fans, some have even proposed theories that his character might be a fugitive Connors or similar enigmatic roles. However, he goes by Martin now, a loving husband and father, yearning to take his family on an adventure to witness Area 51 before it’s gone for good.
Venom is quite the cinephile
Following their arrival in Las Vegas, Venom flaunts his movie trivia skills. He brings up the film “Rain Man” when expressing his confidence about winning a substantial amount of money gambling. Additionally, there’s an amusing moment where Venom tries to mimic Austin Powers by saying, “Yeeeeah, baby.” Later on, after Eddie receives a new suit, Venom pays homage to the 1996 film “Swingers” by exclaiming, “We are so money.
It could very well be that Eddie and Venom have spent a significant amount of their bonded year engrossed in movie viewing, despite their busy schedule. However, since Venom can tap into Eddie’s thoughts, he might already know about the movies they haven’t watched together. Interestingly, due to one of Venom’s unique abilities – delving into the symbiote hive mind – he may be able to gather information about those films from his fellow symbiotes, even if Eddie hasn’t seen them himself.
Regardless, it’s appropriate that Venom quotes “Swingers,” as that film stars Jon Favreau, who plays Happy Hogan in the MCU. Everything is connected in the multiverse, even if it’s in the most tangential of ways.
Tom Hardy’s too sexy for his shirt
Venom isn’t the quietest symbiote out there, and when Eddie attempts to enter a casino, his companion doesn’t hesitate to knock out a pair of individuals – a security guard and an inebriated patron. The former’s tuxedo is then taken by this individual. When Venom comments on how attractive Eddie appears, he retorts, “I’ve received ‘Sexy Man’ awards previously.
In the story, it appears that the mention of awards for Eddie might be a nod to the real-world event where Tom Hardy was named the U.K.’s sexiest man alive in 2021, surpassing contenders such as Daniel Craig, Tom Holland, and Tom Hiddleston.
2021 marked the release of “Venom: Let There Be Carnage”, the final Venom film featuring Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock. It’s possible that his performance in this role contributed to him winning the award, even though he doesn’t exactly exude elegance on screen – instead, he often appears disheveled and unkempt, as if he’d just woken up or rolled out of bed. Yet, perhaps this rough-around-the-edges portrayal resonated with voters.
Toxin gets his hero arc
Initially, it appears Detective Patrick Mulligan (Stephen Graham) perishes during the climactic fight in “Venom: Let There Be Carnage.” However, his eyes turning blue hints at his bonding with the symbiote called Toxin. The sequel, “Venom 3,” unfolds the story of Mulligan/Toxin as they are taken to the Area 55 underground base. Contrary to popular speculation before Knull’s reveal as the primary antagonist, it turns out that Toxin is not the villain, but rather becomes a significant character.
In Marvel Comics, Toxin is often portrayed as a villain, but there are instances where he takes on a heroic role. This duality is displayed in the 2005 “Toxin” limited series written by Peter Milligan and illustrated by Darick Robertson. Here, they pursue Razor-Fist who has escaped from The Raft. This compassionate version of Toxin makes an appearance in “Venom: The Last Dance.” After the xenophage causes destruction at Area 55, Toxin is set free and endeavors to prevent the xenophage from reaching Venom and obtaining the codex that could unleash Knull.
Toxin ultimately dies, but he shows how symbiotes, while monstrous-looking, aren’t inherently bad. Other symbiotes also get released from the lab to help Venom take down the xenophage and prevent Knull from escaping … at least until he’s needed in another Sony project.
Are the Shi’ar in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe?
Despite being advertised as the last Venom film, it appears that “Venom: The Last Dance” is laying groundwork for potential sequels. This is evident not just from the introduction of Knull, but also hints of Rex Strickland having hidden superiors. Scenes suggestive of a secret organization monitoring the movie’s events and Strickland’s mention of an “Imperium” program add to this speculation. Could this “Imperium” be linked to the extraterrestrial race known as the Shi’ar?
The Shi’ar Empire, often referred to as the Imperium, is a dominant and aggressive power seeking control over various cultures and planets. Their strategy involves merging other cultures into their empire, with the aim of increasing its strength. Conquered worlds are permitted some autonomy, but they must adhere to the broader rules established by the Shi’ar. It’s an intriguing speculation that those mysterious figures could potentially be Shi’ar operatives, covertly manipulating events on Earth with the intention of conquering our planet. Strickland and his forces might have been employed to eliminate obstacles such as symbiotes and Knull in this endeavor.
One hurdle that arises is that the Shi’ar, a popular alien race we aspire to include in the MCU, are under exclusive rights control by Marvel Studios. While they have been integral to numerous Marvel storylines since their debut in “X-Men” #97 by Chris Claremont and Dave Cockrum, it seems more probable that the Shi’ar will make an appearance in the MCU rather than the Sony Spider-verse.
It’s a symbiote-palooza
After the success of Venom, Marvel Comics’ initial symbiote character, it wasn’t unexpected for Marvel to leverage his popularity and delve deeper into the symbiote mythos. This led to the introduction of numerous symbiote characters in the comics, some of which have previously appeared in the “Venom” series, like Riot (portrayed by Riz Ahmed) and Carnage (played by Woody Harrelson). In “Venom: Last Dance,” there are also many more symbiotes, but this time they’re not antagonizing Venom. Instead, characters such as Toxin join forces with him in the climax to prevent Knull from acquiring the codex.
Initially, the symbiotes are held captive within different containment devices. However, once the xenophage starts wreaking havoc, they escape and quickly bond with nearby human hosts without any formal introductions. By examining their color patterns, we can deduce that Phage and Scream are among them. It’s plausible that Lasher bonds with Clark Backo’s scientist character, as the symbiote uses her Christmas tree pin to transform her into a green-and-red figure, which aligns with Lasher’s color scheme from the comics.
With great anticipation, Agony forms an alliance with Dr. Payne. Her distinctive hair, resembling long tendrils, makes her easily identifiable. After the decisive battle and Venom’s selfless act, it’s unclear where Dr. Payne ends up, but it seems plausible that she continues to exist, thus creating opportunities for further Agony appearances in future storylines.
Always be wary of leaks
It’s common for there to be lots of speculation and supposed spoilers before the premiere of big movies like “Venom: The Last Dance”. Funny enough, much of what was rumored wasn’t accurate at all.
A rumor circulating about “Venom 3” implied that the movie would introduce Spider-Man for the first time. This scenario suggested Eddie encountering a youth who turned out to be a young Peter Parker. However, through his ability to tap into the multiversal collective consciousness, Eddie learns that he and Peter are destined to meet again under tragic circumstances – with Peter ultimately having to eliminate him at some point in the future. Yet, as the Sony Spider-Man Universe goes, Spidey himself is nowhere to be found in the film. The only boy in the movie is Martin’s son, who is not Peter Parker.
Following Venom’s demise in a burst of acid, which also destroyed the codex and temporarily safeguarded Earth from Knull, Eddie ultimately finds himself in New York. This could set him on a path that might clash with Morbius (played by Jared Leto) and Madame Web (portrayed by Dakota Johnson), who appear to both be residents of the Big Apple. Since Venom is deceased, it’s hard to see why they would take notice of Eddie. However, if the post-credits scene hints at what we suspect, it won’t be long before the lethal guardian resurfaces.
What does the Venom: The Last Dance post-credits scene mean?
In summary, it appears that “The Last Dance” has been marketed as the final Venom film, and the story does seem to conclude with Venom sacrificing itself to save Earth and Eddie, while also eliminating the xenophages. However, in a mid-credits scene for “Venom: The Last Dance,” we witness Knull making ominous threats and revealing his face, suggesting that there may be larger plans involving Venom in the future.
During the final credits, the bartender from the initial scene manages to flee the wreckage of Area 55. As he moves off to seek assistance, the camera focuses on a cockroach crawling near a shattered vial, possibly where Strickland kept Venom residue from the bar. Given cockroaches’ resilience and ability to endure large amounts of radiation, as mentioned by Dr. Payne earlier in the movie, it is plausible that symbiotes share these traits. If there’s still some Venom out there, it might travel across the country and eventually reach Eddie in New York.
This potential development might pave the way for a showdown between Venom and Spider-Man, or even Venom teaming up with an iteration of the Sinister Six. It’s quite unusual not to feature Venom – his most iconic symbiote – if Knull is being introduced. Regardless of this being the last “Venom” film, we believe the character will continue to make appearances in future projects.
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2024-10-25 02:00