As far as we can tell, the new Venom movie is set in a spider-verse that contains no Spider-Man, but while Peter Parker and a few of his associates are currently over in the MCU, Eddie Brock’s first standalone film still contains a few characters known to cross paths with the web-slinger in other timelines.
The most obvious example is Venom himself, whom many fans will still think of primarily as one of Spidey’s greatest antagonists. But another character that viewers might have missed is one John Jameson, an astronaut who eventually became the lycanthropic Man-Wolf in the comics. Speaking to CinemaBlend, Venom producer Avi Arad reflected on this brief inclusion.
“In the comic… it was John Jameson who made [J. Jonah] Jameson believe that Spider-Man had killed his son. That’s kind of how the whole Jameson mystique started, and then Venom [came along]. But the idea was that something happens in the show, and he gets involved. … It’s a great Easter Egg. Because the fans will know exactly why we call [that astronaut] John.”
John’s existence in the world of Venom raises the question of whether his father J. Jonah Jameson could also make an appearance somewhere down the line. As portrayed by J.K. Simmons, the editor-in-chief of the Daily Bugle proved a highlight of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy but hasn’t returned to the big screen since. Assuming the already crowded MCU has no interest in bringing the guy in, perhaps Eddie Brock can serve as the new target of his petty smear campaigns.
Despite the slamming it’s taken from the critics, Venom is on course for a strong opening weekend, and with much of the general public so far responding well to the movie, Tom Hardy’s three-picture agreement with the role may not just be wishful thinking after all. If Venom does land the sequel it so craves, then surely there’s nothing stopping Sony from bringing J. Jonah into the action, though we can already confirm that he wouldn’t be the only recognizable character causing trouble for Eddie.