An eldritch god of darkness who thrived in the void before creation, Knull despises light and life itself. Despite being the god of all symbiotes, The King in Black was trapped by his own creations who turned on him, refusing to aid in his conquest to revert the universe back to the void. However, 2020's King in Black event saw Knull and his symbiote dragon army inadvertently freed by Venom thanks to the manipulations of Carnage, resulting in one of Marvel Comics' most popular crossovers in recent memory. To that end, here are some of the biggest reasons why Knull the Symbiote God is perfect for the MCU (rather than Venom: The Last Dance alone).
10
In Marvel Comics, It Took Everyone To Take Down Knull (Not Just Venom)
Tom Hardy's Venom Should NOT Be Able To Take Knull Down By Himself
For Marvel fans familiar with Knull before his appearance in Venom: The Last Dance's latest trailer, the response has largely been the same: there's no way Eddie Brock and Venom will be able to logically take on the King in Black themselves. While Venom may be the one who delivers the killing blow in 2020's Marvel Comics crossover by Donny Cates and Ryan Stegman, it was only after the vast majority of Marvel's biggest heroes came together to push back against Knull's massive invasion of Earth.
Marvel's King in Black includes the likes of Spider-Man, The Avengers, The X-Men, The Fantastic Four, Silver Surfer, and more. As such, the hope would be that Venom: The Last Dance will serve as a prelude to something much bigger than Sony hopefully has in the works with Marvel Studios. Keeping that in mind, it would be a massive waste if Knull debuts and is defeated all in the same movie by Eddie Brock and Venom by themselves.
9
Knull Is Responsible For Guardians of the Galaxy's Knowhere
The Severed Head Of A Celestial? (That Was Knull)
Knull can also help explain some origins and histories that have yet to be confirmed in the MCU. For example, Knull is the one responsible for Knowhere's existence in the Marvel Comics universe. Eons in the past, it was The King in Black who severed this particular Celestial's head, the first real demonstration of his power and defiance of the Celestials who introduced light and life into the universe.
Seeing as how the origins of MCU's Knowhere have yet to be revealed, Knull could easily be the on-screen explanation as well. The reveal would certainly be an exciting way to establish his power levels early on, while also helping tie him into the existing narrative of the MCU overall. However, Knowhere isn't the only way in which Knull could be easily integrated with the Marvel Studios' universe as a major big bad.
8
Knull Has Major Connections To Thor (and Christian Bale's Gorr)
Creator Of The All-Black
The first symbiote Knull created from the void was in the shape of a sword, and its theft was the primary reason why his symbiotes turned on him and left him imprisoned on the planet Klyntar. Known as the All-Black the Necrosword, the thief was none other than Gorr the God Butcher who was played by Christian Bale in 2022's Thor: Love and Thunder. Having used the sword and its powers in the MCU as well, one could easily see the creatures Gorr spawned as early iterations of the symbiotes.
Custom image of Captain America and Rhodey from the MCU and Venom in The Last Dance
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Likewise, Marvel Comics' Thor had a history with Knull's symbiote dragons in his youth. The God of Thunder also played a key role in 2020's King in Black crossover as well, having been one of the few who actually landed a blow on the Symbiote God (the same could be true for the MCU as well). His hammer would also become part of the cosmic weapon Venom used to kill Knull once and for all.
7
Knull Is Connected To The Eternals' Celestials
He Even Corrupted A Few During King in Black
The Celestials introduced light and life to the universe, and they were the ones who gave Knull the "King in Black" title and the responsibility to care for the universe from the "Living Abyss" as a counter to the Beyonders. However, Knull refused and defied the Celestials, hence his conquest to end all life and return the universe back to the darkness. As such, Knull's first grudge was with the Celestials once he was freed.
Regaining control of the majority of his symbiotes via their collective hive-mind, Knull manages to corrupt a handful of the cosmic beings to aid in his conquest of Earth. As such, it would be fascinating to see this major rivalry in the MCU on such a cosmic scale dating back to the dawn of creation itself. Despite their full debut in 2021's Eternals and a brief cameo in Love and Thunder, there's still so much about the Celestials that has yet to be revealed in the MCU.
6
Knull Is The Perfect Spider-Verse Equivalent For Thanos
He's Arguably More Powerful Than The Mad Titan
In terms of power levels, Knull is arguably more powerful than Thanos himself. For context, one of the Avengers' last-ditch attempts at stopping the King in Black's invasion before they were overwhelmed was to send the Sentry, a hero wielding the "power of a million exploding suns"...and Knull ripped him half like he was paper. As such, Knull is a perfect Thanos-equivalent big bad for the MCU or even just the Spider-Verse if Sony doesn't want to share their new and easily most powerful on-screen villain. After all, it's already been teased in Let There Be Carnage's post-credits scene that the hive mind spans the multiverse.
5
Thanks To Knull, Venom Could Be Established As A Genuine MCU Hero
Knull Is How Venom Gained The Avengers' Trust
It was 2020's King in Black and the events leading up to it in the comics that led to Eddie Brock and Venom gaining the Avengers' trust. This was particularly true of Captain America, who spent time with Brock creating defense plans ahead of Knull's imminent arrival with his horde of symbiote dragons and Celestials. Perhaps the same could be true for an MCU version of King in Black where Tom Hardy's Venom could truly evolve and be seen as a hero in a scenario where The Lethal Protector potentially returns to the MCU to face the threat of Knull.
4
Knull Can Finally Motivate A Spider-Man and Venom Crossover Movie In The MCU
It's Time To Finally Bring Holland and Hardy Together
If Knull doesn't end up becoming a major foe for all the MCU's heroes (like he should), the Symbiote God should at least be able to finally bring Tom Holland's Spider-Man and Hardy's Venom together on the big screen. It would still be a hard sell based on his intense power levels in the comics, but the MCU's Spider-Man and Venom joining forces is far more palatable than Venom taking down The King in Black alone in live-action.
Split image of the Venom The Last Dance poster and Kraven the Hunter
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Thus far, the closest the current versions of Spider-Man and Venom have gotten is Venom seeing the Webslinger on TV. They also briefly existed in the same universe as confirmed by Spider-Man: No Way Home, albeit being thousands of miles away. As such, Knull could be the very exciting (and incredibly dangerous) reason that finally brings them together.
3
Spider-Man's Next MCU Movie Could Have Knull As The Endgame
There's Rumors Sony Wants Spider-Man 4 To Be Multiversal
While many would like to see the MCU's Spider-Man 4 more grounded and street-level after No Way Home, there are reports that Sony has been pushing for another multiversal adventure. If that ends up being the case, Knull the Symbiote God debuting as a threat to both the Sony Spider-Man Universe and the MCU simultaneously could be an exciting prospect. This would mean that Venom: The Last Dance could potentially serve as a prelude for Spider-Man 4. Keeping that in mind, perhaps The Last Dance is set to end with Knull accidentally being released by Venom (just like in the comics).
2
Knull Can Be The Next Major MCU Threat After The Multiverse Saga
A Symbiote Saga for the Entire MCU?
The Last Dance could serve as the first chapter of a much bigger narrative for the King in Black. Assuming Sony wants to further merge their universe with the MCU to share in the wealth of all the exciting possibilities that come from further collaboration, it would be very exciting if Knull was gradually positioned as the next big bad for the MCU's next saga following the end of the Multiverse Saga that's set to end in 2027 with Avengers: Secret Wars. After all, there's no feasible way even a moderately faithful and/or successful King in Black adaptation could ever happen in the Sony universe alone.
1
It's Unlikely Venom 3 Will Be Knull's Only On-Screen Appearance
He Has To Have A Bigger Future
At the end of the day, it would be nice to give Sony Pictures the benefit of the doubt and assume that Venom: The Last Dance won't be Knull's first and only appearance in live-action. If so, the fact that this will be the last known Venom movie does make it logical that an MCU-connected story could be in the works. After all, just because the Venom trilogy may be ending doesn't necessarily mean that Tom Hardy is done playing Eddie Brock and Venom. Future appearances are likely still possible, especially now that Knull has been thrown into the mix. Having said that, the MCU is really the only universe where Knull the Symbiote God makes the most sense.
