Once separated by movie realities, Spider-Man now lives in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, for the moment, thanks to a unique shared use agreement between Sony and Disney. Meanwhile, Peter Parker (Tom Holland) just proved his staying power with the success of Spider-Man: Homecoming. As a result, Marvel can now take full advantage of their sizable if somewhat limited Spidey entourage. This also means Spider-Man's sequel and forthcoming roles in Avengers: Infinity War and beyond are secure.

Sony’s attempt to construct their own Spider-verse, however, mucks things up a bit. Despite a series of see-sawing public statements, Marvel head Kevin Feige and Spider-producer extraordinaire Amy Pascal finally clarified the continued separation. As of the moment, Sony’s villain universe and the MCU ‒ aside from (maybe) some Peter Parker interaction ‒ are two, distinct entities. A disconnected film world means favorites like Venom (played by Tom Hardy), Black Cat, or Carnage won’t likely appear in the MCU or its Phase 3-ender Avengers 4.

At the same time, Marvel does have a few possible semi-crossover options. Recently, Homecoming cast member Isabella Amara divulged that her character, Sally Avril, will drop by in Infinity War. Flash Thompson, played by Tony Revolori, already exists in-canon. In theory, he could also make an appearance in other Marvel films. That also means that Venom ‒ or at least one version of him ‒ could still darken Marvel’s doorway.

Two Distinct Venoms

While the boundaries between cinematic worlds seem pretty fixed at present, Sony and Marvel can still take advantage of their unique agreement by sharing the symbiote. Venom readers are well-aware of the many liaisons between the Klyntar suit and different Marvel characters over the years. Since Sony revealed Eddie Brock as their official Venom, he's likely a permanent fixture in their universe (at least for now). But Eddie's lost his second skin on occasion. As a result, it's not outside the realm of possibility that it could wind up in the hands of Flash Thompson.

Flash’s heroic version, Agent Venom, first appeared in Amazing Spider-Man #654, growing rather popular with readers. Since Flash already debuted in the MCU, setting him up on a date with a certain gooey alien wouldn’t require much effort. Depending on how Venom shakes out, Marvel and Sony could briefly separate the Klyntar from Eddie in the film world. Sony recently added Ann Weying (Brock’s ex-wife) to the cast, suggesting a possible symbiote-split – especially since Ann became She-Venom for a time. During a falling out of sorts, Venom could cut and run from Eddie and slink over to the MCU. There, he discovers Thompson. Naturally, he’ll have to split from Flash again, though, like the symbiote’s current comic story arc, if or when Eddie returns for the Venom sequel.

Of course, there is a less-complicated way to bring symbiosis to the MCU. Not long ago, Sony also confirmed Carnage for the Venom movie. This implies that, at some point, Venom will spawn his murderous heir apparent (symbiotes asexually shed their seed-spawn, by the way). Later, Carnage begat his own child, Toxin, who could easily wind up in the Marvel Universe, at least if Sony isn't willing to share Venom. A Flash-Toxin combo would be a retcon of sorts, but it could work just as well in theory. Also, Venom has a number of forcibly extracted "children." One of them, such as Phage or Scream, could also make their way to the MCU.

Presuming Sony is down with sharing the Klyntar love, then all Flash needs to do is snag his infamous partner.

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Venom in Space?

Exploring Marvel's plausible options requires a quick look at Marvel comic history. Starting off as Peter Parker's high school bully, Flash Thompson later became his college chum. Spider-Man inspires him to join the Army. During his tour of duty in the Iraq War (in Amazing Spider-Man #574), Flash is shot and loses the use of his legs. Eventually, he accepts a dangerous assignment, where he'll bond with the recently captured symbiote. Although his missions as Agent Venom will put him in constant jeopardy, he'll regain the use of his legs.

Now, let's step back into the MCU. Flash is now canon, as of Homecoming, but Venom remains the purvue of Sony. Technically, Venom doesn’t need to play a role in Avengers: Infinity War at all, though. All Marvel needs to do is allude to symbiotic life at some point. The Guardians could talk some smack about Klyntars, or Thanos could drop a casual reference. When the third or fourth Avengers arrives, the reference is out of the bag, and Flash partakes in the massive battle sequence. During which, he grows to love heroics but is also tragically paralyzed. Now, with the symbiote out of the bag and an injured Flash, Marvel is all set for an Agent Venom role in future entries.

Flash could even play a part in Marvel’s non-terrestrial adventures, heading to space as Venom: Space Knight. Guardians of the Galaxy director James Gunn already teased a larger (and key) role for the cosmic side of Marvel after Phase 3. After his tour of duty ended, he and Venom signed up for a stint with the Guardians. Sending Flash to space is a surefire way to avoid any confusion between Sony and Marvel’s symbiotic character base. It would also allow Marvel to explore the roots of Klyntar, the planet of the symbiotes, something which could affect both cinematic realms.

Seeing as Sony appears to be altering Venom’s backstory to feature less Spider-Man, there’s no reason Marvel can’t retcon things to make sense for Flash and Agent Venom (or even another symbiote). Gunn also hinted big changes for the Guardians post-Avengers 4, including more Earth-based characters. Sure, he might be referring to Wendell Vaughn (Quasar) or Richard Rider (Nova), but Flash is from Earth, so he qualifies, at least via a loophole.

A New Role for Flash?

While injuring Flash could pave the way for an MCU symbiote, there are some disadvantages to the move. For one, Flash is likely slated to return in Spider-Man: Homecoming 2, which arrives after Phase 3 - set minutes after Avengers 4. If Marvel damages Flash, they'd essentially accelerate his story line by nearly a decade. Of course, with the world in chaos after Thanos' invasion, nothing in the MCU will ever be the same again.

Also, it's not like Homecoming hasn't already taken a few liberties with the traditional Spider-Man tale, including giving Aunt May attributes similar to her Ultimate counterpart, adjusting (or more so alluding to) Mary Jane-Peter relationship, and altering Flash’s traditional role to suit the polytechnic school crowd. A wounded Flash would also tie directly to the recent conflict, as well as upping the stakes. It would also set up an intriguing dramatic component for the Spider-Man sequel – especially considering Thompson's previous geek-bully role.

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Assuming the Spider-verse runs well-enough for Kevin Feige to comfortably incorporate some of its elements, Marvel has a unique opportunity to align two shared realms in a significant way. Once more, everything depends on Sony's Venom movie. A strong showing from the Tom Hardy-led film could give Disney the incentive to relax the permeability between the MCU and Sony, creating a relationship with Sony similar to their Marvel's TV and streaming universes. Worst comes to worst, if the Spider-lite Spider-verse’s webbing doesn’t stick, Sony may give up their little corner of Marvel universe for good.

Without a doubt, Disney is already preparing a contingency one way or another. Flash actor Revolori also expressed interest in continuing his character's story arc, which is one less hurdle for Flash-Venom role in the MCU. If the House of Ideas plays their symbiotic cards right, though, Venom could wrap its sinewy tendrils around the MCU as well as the Spider-verse. And that's something any Spider-fan can get behind.

Next: Sony Responds to Spider-Man Spinoff Universe Kraven Rumors