6 Ways That Venom Could Connect To The Marvel Cinematic Universe

Fans have been paying attention with a mix of excitement and apprehension as Sony have been releasing more and more details about their upcoming Spider-Man cinematic universe that, er, won't include Spider-Man. As a weird quirk of Sony's deal with Marvel Studios, Tom Holland is playing Peter Parker in the MCU while the likes of Venom and Silver and Black will take place in their own world. At least, that's what we've been told. Spider-Man: Homecoming director Jon Watts confidently stated that Venom is "not connected to the Marvel world," which was backed up by Kevin Feige saying that "there is no plan for Venom in the MCU." Seems pretty clear cut, right? Wrong! Sony's Amy Pascal recently threw a spanner in the works a few days ago by claiming that the studio's films will indeed be connected to the MCU in some form. "Both movies will now take place in the world that we are creating for Peter Parker,” she said. Venom and its related projects will apparently be "adjuncts" to the Homecoming films but they'll "still all be in the same world." So, how can both of these two seemingly contradictory views be right? If we're not going to have, say, Tom Hardy's Venom as a main villain in a future Spider-Man movie before spinning off into Sony's solo film, then how can Venom be linked to the MCU? Well, we've got some ideas about how everything could fit together, so let's start theorizing! 6) It's Another Part Of The Marvel Multiverse OK, so how can Venom both not be in the MCU but also apparently take place in the same world? Well, assuming that Pascal used the slightly wrong terminology there, it's possible that Venom won't take place in the Marvel Cinematic Universe but at least be part of the same multiverse. Comic book fans will be familiar with the concept of the multiverse, and it's one that's just been introduced into the movies, as well. Ant-Man first teased the idea of different dimensions with the Quantum Realm, before Doctor Strange fully embraced the concept. We still haven't had a straight-up parallel world in the MCU just yet, but that could be the form that Venom's universe takes. Whether it would be addressed in the movies or not, telling fans that Venom is set within the MCU multiverse would be a good way to appease those who want everything to be connected as well as leaving the movie separate from the works of Marvel Studios, allowing Sony to do what they want with the film. Who knows, this notion could even lead to a Spider-Verse adaptation several years down the line? Fans are often calling for a movie that unites the various different Spider-Men from different universes (in particular, bringing back both Tobey Maguire and Andrew Garfield's versions), and introducing the idea of the multiverse could get the ball rolling on that. 5) The Marvel-Netflix Approach Alternatively, the relationship between Venom and the MCU could take a leaf out of how Marvel's Netflix shows fit into the wider universe. Though the adventures of Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage and Iron Fist definitely take place within the same world that we're watching in the movies, the connection isn't actually that big a deal within the TV series themselves. Unlike Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., which features movie characters like Phil Coulson, Lady Sif and even a brief cameo from Nick Fury, the Marvel-Netflix shows won't ever feature the likes of, say, Captain America or Iron Man. With a very different tone, they're mostly happy to keep to themselves but will occasionally namedrop a hero from the movies or allude to a big screen event in order to remind viewers that they're set in the same world. That could be the approach Sony and Marvel take with Venom. With no true crossover with the MCU, Venom would be solely Sony's project - just as Kevin Feige has said it would be in the past - but Pascal's comments about it being an "adjunct" to the Homecoming movies would still apply. All it would take is a reference to a certain red and blue wallcrawler or maybe the Avengers themselves to please fans and tie it all into the bigger picture. This might be the least interesting option available to link the movies, but it would be the easiest to achieve. 4) Tom Hardy Cameo In Spider-Man: Homecoming 2 On the other hand, why do they need to be so coy about crossing over the Spider-Man: Homecoming movies and Sony's Venom series? Why not just have Tom Hardy's Eddie Brock turn up for a cameo? Yes, Feige has said that there are no plans for Venom to turn up in the MCU, but he was most likely referring to the fact that they'll not use the character in any major sense, most likely due to the complex rights issues. Still, seeing as Sony and Marvel Studios have come to an agreement over the use of Spider-Man, it surely wouldn't be that hard for Hardy to drop by for a quick cameo, would it? It would grant fans' wishes of seeing Spidey battle his nemesis as well as establishing the link between the two movie franchises. Obviously, Hardy's casting has come too late in the day for us to expect him in Spider-Man: Homecoming, but that doesn't rule him out of making an appearance in the sequel. Assuming everything goes right with the film, Venom will likely have already arrived by the time we get Homecoming 2, so the cameo could see a fully-formed version of the antihero. Maybe they could even start the movie with a battle between Hardy and Holland, before moving on with the film's main storyline? 3) Tom Holland Cameo In Venom Inserting Tom Hardy's Venom into the MCU would be great to see, don't get us wrong, but it'd likely open a massive can of corporate worms and it's these behind-the-scenes complications which make it difficult to believe that it could happen. Besides, it's possible that only giving us a snippet of a Spidey vs. Venom battle would just be frustrating, as we really want to see them go at it properly. Given that, it would probably make more sense for Tom Holland to cameo as Spidey in Venom. Amy Pascal was even asked if this was possible and she gave a positive answer, saying "there is always a chance." For one, Sony still have the rights to Spider-Man, so it would presumably be far easier for them to include their own character in one of their movies than Marvel landing a cameo from Venom. Plus, assuming that Venom will stick with something at least vaguely resembling Eddie Brock and the symbiote's origins from the comics, Peter Parker will have to appear in some form for it to make sense. He's surely not going to have a major part in the movie, though, so what we suggest would be to have Tom Holland appear in a flashback scene. Perhaps when Brock first encounters and bonds with the symbiote he gets a vision of where it's been. The flashback could briefly run through the story of Spidey donning his black suit and then eventually discarding it, leaving the symbiote to find Brock. There really needs to be some acknowledgement of the symbiote's prior history with Spider-Man in Venom, otherwise not only will its Spider-Man-esque look not make sense, but the character could end up being too far removed from the villain we love from the comics. 2) Spider-Man: Homecoming Post-Credits Scene Maybe we're thinking too hard about this, though, and the answer for how Venom will be connected to the Spider-Man movies is staring us in the face? Think about it - how has the Marvel Cinematic Universe previously linked all its movies together? That's right, with the franchise's patented post-credits scenes that typically set up future outings. Like we said earlier, there's no way that Marvel and Sony have snuck Tom Hardy into Spider-Man: Homecoming without us knowing, as the actor was only cast after filming on the movie had wrapped. However, that doesn't mean that they couldn't have whipped up some CGI black goop to feature in a sneaky post-credits moment. Jon Watts did say that the movie's credits would be a "worth sticking around for," after all. We can see the post-credits sequence now. It follows an asteroid as it crashes into Earth. As the smoke from the meteor clears, it opens up and the symbiote crawls out. Essentially, it would be telling us to tune in to Venom to find out what happens next. It would be a very simple scene, but it would mean a lot to fans. The idea of a cinematic universe led by Spider-Man's supporting characters and enemies needs to have some connection to Peter Parker, and using the mainline Spider-Man movies to launch and set-up Sony's universe makes a lot of sense. 1) Spidey's Black Suit In Avengers: Infinity War Look, due to the complicated issues arising from Marvel and Sony's deal to share Spider-Man but not all his supporting characters, we aren't going to have the perfect Spider-Man vs. Venom story we'd love to see. Building on what we were saying a moment ago, though, there are ways for the MCU movies to set up the Sony universe and bring the separate series closer together. Perhaps our favourite way that this could be done is if Spidey's black suit was introduced in Avengers: Infinity War. Before we go any further, it's time for a quick history lesson. In the comics, Peter Parker first wears the costume that would later be revealed to be the symbiote in 1984's Secret Wars. In that crossover event, Earth's Mightiest Heroes are transported to the distant planet of Battleworld by the Beyonder. While we don't expect these elements to find their way into Infinity War, the movie's storyline will similarly involve the Avengers and friends heading off into space. Whilst out there in the cosmos, Spidey could easily come into contact with the symbiote and don the black suit. As in the original Secret Wars, Infinity War wouldn't fully delve into the familiar story of the symbiote bringing out Peter's darker, violent side but just introduce the idea of the symbiote suit. By the next time we see the suit in Venom, it would have left Peter and gone on to bond with Brock. Our idea of a flashback featuring Tom Holland could even come into play here to fill the gap. Sure, this method wouldn't give us the full arc of Venom's origins but honestly, even non-comic book readers are familiar with it from Spider-Man 3, so it's not truly a necessity. And anything to distance Sony's new version of Venom from Topher Grace's version in that movie is a good thing. Introducing the black suit in Infinity War would be a brilliant way to tie the two universes together as it would not only would fit in with the movie's story, but would also call back to the comics to boot.