There’s always been a lot of excitement and controversy that surrounds Marvel’s Venom, but the character has reached an entirely new audience thanks to his solo film franchise. There was understandable skepticism over the merits of a Venom film series in a Spider-Man-less Marvel universe, but the success of the original movie and the anticipation around Venom 2: Let There Be Carnage has proven that the dark anti-hero can stand on his own.
The first two Venom movies have included some of the more expected Marvel characters that are within Venom’s orbit, but there are many more that deserve a place in Sony’s cinematic universe as well as others that shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near it.
10 Should Join: Pyre’s Hard-Boiled Backstory Makes Him An Ideal Venom Villain
Fire powers are fairly generic when it comes to superheroes and villains and so the individual's personality and how they use their skills becomes the deciding factor. Gray Russell's Pyre is an undercover journalist who gets in over his head with a local gang, which results in his fire powers.
"Funeral Pyre" is a strong story arc that forces both Venom and Punisher to work together, but Pyre is exactly the kind of grounded villain with a gritty history that fits with the world that Venom's film has cultivated.
9 Shouldn’t Join: Steel Spider Is More Of A Joke Than A Threat For Venom
It's an understatement in saying that comics have tons of disposable characters and lower-tier heroes and villains that just disappear. Steel Spider is fascinating in theory. He's a vigilante named Oliver Osnick who warps Spider-Man's altruism with Doc Ock's hardware and misguided insanity.
Steel Spider is introduced as an obligation for Venom's team, the Thunderbolts, but he easily disarms him in an embarrassing fashion. Venom could quickly introduce Steel Spider, only to immediately take him out in an appropriately subversive way. That being said, there are already enough spider shenanigans going on without Steel Spider added to the mix.
8 Should Join: Lee Price Becomes Venom’s New Host & So Much More
An interesting wrinkle to Venom's lore is that the symbiote character has several long-term hosts beyond Eddie Brock. Flash Thompson and Mac "Scorpion" Gargan are the next most popular hosts, but they're already being used in Marvel's Spider-Man movies. The next best choice is Lee Price.
It'd be rich territory to eventually explore a conflict between Eddie and Venom and he turns to Lee in the interim. Price eventually becomes Maniac, which could get set up for a future move. Maniac's fate is also tied to Cletus, so now that he's in the picture, Lee's inclusion seems even more appropriate.
7 Shouldn’t Join: It’s Too Soon To Bring Mister Negative Into The Picture
Mister Negative is a fairly recent addition to the Marvel universe and is already a very popular threat in both Venom and Spider-Man stories. It'd be exciting to see this character brought to life in live-action, but it's too soon and may not align with Sony's plans for the character.
Mister Negative is crucial to Eddie Brock's post-Venom life. Mister Negative removes Eddie's cancer, but doing so leads to the creation of Anti-Venom, which can burn Venom on contact and becomes a major presence. It's a great story, but Sony's version of Eddie isn't even sick.
6 Should Join: Jack-O-Lantern Deserves His Due Before Spider-Man’s Hobgoblin
The Spider-Man series is filled with various takes on the Hobgoblin and other similar villains, but Jack-o-Lantern fulfills a similar role, albeit for Venom. Jack-o-Lantern turns into a decent villain for Venom, albeit Flash Thompson's host of the symbiote.
Venom humiliates Jack-o-Lantern and the villain takes it upon himself to dismantle Flash's life and become a persistent threat. It's fair to say that a cinematic Hobgoblin is reserved for a future Spider-Man movie, which is why Jack-o-Lantern is perfect, runs no risk of crossover, and actually holds significance for Venom.
5 Shouldn’t Join: Sleeper Combines Symbiote Brutality With Kree Resources
There’s always a new symbiote lurking around the corner just when it seems like they’ve all been discovered. Sleeper is a notable symbiote abomination, but one that’s a step in the wrong direction for the Venom movies. Sleeper is a symbiote that links together with Kree soldier, Tel-Kar, who gets turned into the symbiote’s brain-dead host.
Sleeper doesn’t just have Venom’s standard powers, but he can also create liquid and airborne chemicals, like corrosive blasts or pheromones to hypnotize the enemy. Sleeper is another character with just too many cosmic elements and the heavy Kree connection doesn’t help either.
4 Should Join: Hybrid’s Cautionary Tale Is The Perfect Fit For Sony’s Universe
Hybrid poses a threat to Venom and Carnage and he looks like a more intimidating combination of them both. Hybrid is the byproduct of the symbiote Guardians’ fusion, which then takes crippled security guard, Scott Washington, as its host.
There's a complicated story told through Scott and Hybrid since he uses this new strength to take out the gang that crippled him. Venom views it as his responsibility to execute evil symbiotes and Hybrid makes the cut. It's a fitting story for a Venom movie and it could even reform Hybrid and make him an ally by the end.
3 Shouldn’t Join: Tombstone’s Firm Grasp On The Criminal Underworld Is Lost On Venom
Tombstone is a necessary Marvel villain in the comics and there needs to be lower-level crime kingpins and mob bosses to extort other characters and command organized crime in the city. Lonnie Lincoln's antics are important, but they're not the best cinematic match for Venom.
Tombstone deserves to be featured against a less powerful and visceral character and it squanders a better use of Tombstone elsewhere. Eddie Brock’s world as a photographer in the movies feels even more disconnected from the Tombstone that’s in the comics and so these two on each other’s radars feels disingenuous.
2 Should Join: The Punisher Would Be The Perfect Partner For Venom’s Mayhem
One of the best things about comics is when unusual events bring together even more unusual pairings of characters. The Punisher represents a grim and violent side of Marvel who often gets reluctantly roped together with heroes and Venom is one of the more interesting examples.
It feels like the Punisher is far too dark to appear in the MCU or by Spider-Man's side, so he could be a perfect sidekick for Venom. Both characters reflect a similarly twisted sense of honor. It'd be thrilling to watch these two characters on screen together, either as a team or as enemies.
1 Shouldn’t Join: Knull Is The Progenitor Of The Klyntar But Too Cosmic For Sony
The Klyntar symbiote species has been ret-conned in some big ways. One of the sloppier versions of this introduces Knull, who is essentially the God of the symbiote and a being that predates all other Klyntar history and even feuds against the Celestials.
Knull’s able to live for billions of years since he can spawn more symbiote and transfer knowledge and power to them. Knull and what he represents is just too radical of a turn for what Sony:s universe has built. There hasn't been a touch of cosmic material and this would take the story way too far.
0 Comments