Easter Eggs and References in Venom: The Last Dance

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As a lifelong comic book enthusiast and moviegoer, I must say that this is an exciting time for both Marvel and Sony fans alike! The intertwining of characters and actors from various universes is not only intriguing but also adds a layer of depth to these stories.

At long last, “Venom: The Last Tango” has hit the big screen. This third standalone movie featuring the much-loved Marvel Comics character, “Venom: The Last Tango,” is also the fifth film in Sony’s collection of films centered around characters connected to Spider-Man, coming after “Venom,” “Venom: Let There Be Carnage,” “Morbius,” and “Madame Web.” Marketed as Tom Hardy’s final Venom movie, it also hints at a potential new danger in the form of Knull, making “Venom: The Last Tango” both an ending film and potentially a launchpad for fresh adventures.

In much the same way as many comic book movies do, Venom: The Last Dance is brimming with Easter eggs and nods to the comics and earlier films within the franchise. Initially, it may not appear that there’s a connection to Spider-Man like fans anticipated, but devotees of Venom comics will undoubtedly find numerous references to the latest storylines Marvel introduced for the character since 2018, thanks to writer Danny Coates and artist Ryan Stegman. Here are some of the most crucial Easter eggs and references found in Venom: The Last Dance.

6 Retconned Out of the MCU?

One of the early sequences in the movie “Venom: The Last Dance” mirrors the post-credits scene from “Spider-Man: No Way Home“, where Eddie Brock is found in a Mexican bar, trying to comprehend the Marvel Cinematic Universe after being moved there in the post-credit scene of “Venom: Let There Be Carnage“. The final moment of the post-credits scene from “No Way Home” showed Venom and Eddie Brock being sent back to their universe due to Doctor Strange’s spell, but the last image hinted at a fragment of the symbiote remaining in the bar, suggesting a potential MCU interpretation of Venom. However, “Venom: The Last Dance” alters this setup.

In Eddie’s return to his original universe, what appears to be a small remnant of Venom from the bar in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is found instead at the bar where he arrives back. This seems to contradict or alter the hint of Venom in the post-credits scene of “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” suggesting that this Venom exists not within the MCU, but rather in the Sony Universe.

One significant detail is that it appears the symbiote may have split into two parts, one appearing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) during “No Way Home” and another at the bar in Eddie’s universe as seen in “Venom: Let There Be Carnage”. The piece shown in “No Way Home” is found in a more vibrant, tidy bar compared to its appearance in “Venom: The Last Dance”. Additionally, the symbiote fragment left behind in “The Last Dance” is attached to a coin, whereas the one in “No Way Home” stands independently. This could suggest that Venom may have intentionally divided himself, thereby leaving open the possibility for his official entry into the MCU.

5 Toxin? Not So Fast

Regarding the plot twist in “Venom: Let There Be Carnage”, the character of Detective Patrick Mulligan, portrayed by Stephen Graham, is set to undergo a significant transformation. In the original comics, Mulligan transforms into Toxin, another symbiote and offspring of Carnage. The movie hinted at this change in the final scene as Mulligan’s eyes turned blue, suggesting he might adopt the role of Toxin in future installments.

In the movie “Venom: The Last Dance,” Mulligan is present, but the hint towards Toxin is pushed aside. The film explicitly states, “his symbiote deserted him,” while it continues to depict him being infected by a different green symbiote obtained at Area 55. There might have been plans for Mulligan to be Toxin originally, but these were changed during post-production or dialog replacement, leaving room for speculation about the script’s original intentions.

4 Symbiotes

Discussing Symbiotes, the movie Venom: The Last Dance showcases a variety that are reminiscent of their comic book counterparts. Contrastingly, the 2018 film Venom was heavily influenced by the 1993 comic series Venom: The Lethal Protector. However, it primarily focused on adapting aspects such as The Life Foundation, Eddie Brock residing in San Francisco, and Carlton Drake serving as the principal antagonist. These elements were blended with one of the comics’ symbiotes, Riot.

However, this comic not only stars Venom but also introduces several other symbiotes, similar to those seen in “The Last Dance.” Unlike “Venom: The Lethal Protector,” where Venom battles these symbiotes, here they join forces to combat the monstrous Xenophage.

The symbiotes exhibit diverse hues and unique abilities. One appears to grow a massive fist, while another is capable of merging into a dual-headed entity that can grapple stronger adversaries.

Two distinctive characters strongly reminiscent of their comic book origins are Lasher, portrayed as a green symbiote capable of growing sharp tendrils and bonding with Sadie Christmas (Clark Backo), and Agony, depicted when Dr. Teddy Payne (Juno Temple) links with a purple symbiote that bestows her with super-speed thanks to an electrical current.

Over the course of the three “Venom” films, the symbiotes that viewers have encountered include Venom, Carnage, Riot, Agony, Lasher, along with a handful of unidentified ones.

3 Comic Book Characters and Wider Universe References

The “Venom” movie series has predominantly drawn its characters from Marvel comics published since the 1990s, and this trend continues with “Venom: The Last Dance”. In this installment, Chiwetel Ejiofor portrays Rex Strickland, a character introduced by Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman in Venom volume 4 #1 from May 2018. This comic also marked the introduction of Knull, which explains why Ejiofor’s character appears in this storyline.

In contrast to his comic book character, who was associated with S.H.I.E.L.D., bonded with a symbiote, and worked as an agent named “Tyrannosaurus” for Sym Soldiers, the movie version portrays him simply as a general. He is not played by Mordo’s variant from the Marvel Cinematic Universe, as portrayed by Chiwetel Ejiofor.

In the movie, Juno Temple portrays Teddy Payne, a character who is both a female version of Thaddeus Paine and also resembles Leslie Gesneria from the Agony comics. The original Thaddeus Paine was created by Len Kaminski and debuted in Morbius the Living Vampire #4 in December 1994. This comic book character is significantly more sinister and sadistic than the film version, leading to questions about why they chose to adapt or reimagine this character, especially given that the hints suggest she may play a significant role in the franchise going forward.

As a passionate film enthusiast, I can’t help but ponder over why the creators, David Michelinie and Ron Lim, opted not to name their Venom: Lethal Protector character Leslie Gesneria. It seems rather puzzling since that name doesn’t appear to be associated with any other characters in the comics. While it could potentially be due to Thaddeus Paine’s connection with Morbius, this feels somewhat tenuous at best.

2 Knull, The King in Black

In the promotions for “Venom: The Last Dance”, Knull appears quite prominently. However, it’s essential to clarify that while Knull may not be an Easter Egg in the traditional sense, fans might find it disappointing to discover that he doesn’t serve as the main antagonist of the film. Instead, he makes brief appearances at the start and end, remaining a mysterious figure lurking in the background.

To put it simply, the film abounds with nods to his comic book past and hints about future events. The character Knull is portrayed by Andy Serkis, who has previously directed “Venom: Let There Be Carnage.” Notably, Serkis is renowned for his motion capture roles, including Gollum in “The Lord of the Rings,” King Kong in Peter Jackson’s 2005 remake, and Caesar in the “Planet of the Apes” series from 2011 to 2017. Additionally, this marks Serkis’ second stint as a Marvel antagonist, having previously played Ulysses Klaw in “Avengers: Age of Ultron” and “Black Panther.

In the initial comic, his symbiote-made beings turned against him and imprisoned him on a world they named Klyntar. To break free, he requires a Codex which is in Venom’s possession. This plot device of the Codex originates from the 2019 storyline “Absolute Carnage.” The villain declaring himself “The King in Black” at the end of the movie refers to both his title in the comics and the 2020 storyline of the same name, where various characters in the Marvel Universe unite to thwart Knull.

It appears that Knull may take on the role of the main antagonist in Sony’s interconnected universe, bringing together characters such as Kraven the Hunter, Morbius, Madame Web, the Spider-Women, and potentially Agony and a reappearing Venom.

Knull’s unique trait lies in what isn’t revealed. His iconic sword, All-Black the Necrosword, is a potent ancient weapon, originally crafted within the skull of a deceased Celestial, which transformed into Knowhere in the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s Guardians of the Galaxy movies. In Marvel Comics, this sword was once wielded by Gorr the God Butcher, and it was later introduced into the MCU in Thor: Love and Thunder.

In the Sony Marvel films, events related to the MCU can’t be referenced, which means the portrayal of Knull in these movies could differ significantly from his original representation. A hint of his unique weapon was dropped in the mid-credit scene, distinct from the Necrosword we saw in “Thor: Love and Thunder.” Consequently, this Knull might wield a sword that predates symbiotes but bears a different name and origin story.

1 Dark Knight Rises and Ted Lasso Reunions

In an intriguing connection, the movie “Venom: The Last Dance” serves as a mini-reunion for “The Dark Knight Rises” and “Ted Lasso“. Notably, Tom Hardy, who portrayed Bane in “The Dark Knight Rises“, played his first comic book villain before taking on the role of Venom. Interestingly, Temple Juno, Hardy’s co-star in “Venom: The Last Dance“, had a brief appearance in the third installment of the “Dark Knight “series as Jen, Selina Kyle/Catwoman’s roommate and accomplice. Despite not sharing a scene together in “The Dark Knight Rises“, after 12 years, they get to collaborate for the first time in this final chapter of a superhero trilogy.

Simultaneously, Juno Temple appeared as Keeley Jones in the popular Apple TV+ show “Ted Lasso”. Interestingly, her co-star from “Ted Lasso”, Cristo Fernández, returns to his role as a barkeeper, this time from the Marvel Cinematic Universe movie “Spider-Man: No Way Home”. In Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, he portrays a character similar to his original, playing Dani Rojas on “Ted Lasso”, one of the main soccer players in the series.

Unfortunately, the beloved characters portrayed by the co-stars of Ted Lasso don’t interact in the current storyline. However, with Temple’s Dr. Payne acquiring the Agony symbiote and Fernández departing from the destroyed Area 55, where a fragment of Venom’s symbiote remains, it’s possible they could appear together in future installments set within the Spider-Man Universe on the silver screen.

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2024-10-26 04:32