MCU's Spider-Man 4 Villain Has To Be Venom (But Not Eddie Brock)

The as-yet-untitled Spider-Man 4 must follow through on No Way Home's mid-credits scene Venom tease - but not necessarily with Eddie Brock as the symbiote's human host. The first installment of Tom Holland's second trilogy as the Web-Slinging superhero can still fulfill its predecessor's promise without Venom's best-known host. In fact, an earlier film has already perfectly set up an alternate character to bond with Venom in a future movie. If executed correctly, the MCU's alternate take on Venom could even be better than a simple retreading of Eddie Brock's comic book story, which has already been adapted on several occasions to varying levels of success.

The mid-credits scene of Spider-Man: No Way Home featured a cameo from Tom Hardy's Eddie Brock, who had been transported to Earth-616 along with other Spider-Man villains as a result of Doctor Strange's botched spell earlier in the film. Despite sitting out the action of No Way Home, Eddie still delivers one major surprise, leaving behind a single sample of his living Venom symbiote when he is transported back home by Doctor Strange's second spell. While this certainly teases Venom's involvement in Tom Holland's confirmed second trilogy, it doesn't necessarily imply that Eddie Brock himself will be a part of that story moving forward in the MCU.

Marvel Needs To Follow Through On No Way Home's Venom Tease

Eddie Brock in a bar in Spider-Man No Way Home

While the prospect of seeing Venom adapted for the MCU is exciting for those eager to see him fight Spider-Man, Marvel must fulfill this Venom tease in Spider-Man 4. The increased number of projects in Phase 4 has led to many criticisms that Marvel's teases take far too long to come to fruition. Hints at looming storylines have come to feel soulless with no end point in sight, but Venom can fix this problem by playing a major role in an upcoming film. In order to keep momentum on their side, Marvel can't wait to bring the symbiote into play, even making Venom the over-arching threat in the brand-new trilogy.

Furthermore, including Venom in the new trilogy's plans right away allows the filmmakers to truly do justice to his comic book storyline, which would take several films to adapt properly. The symbiote is the perfect villain for Spider-Man 4 and beyond, bonding with Peter before moving on to a dangerous, more terrifying host. With a full trilogy to play with the character, the MCU can make Venom one of its greatest villains of all time, rivaling even the likes of Kang and Thanos. His presence could even forebode the coming of the symbiote god Knull and the "King in Black" storyline, but only if Marvel starts on the story immediately.

Sony's Venomverse Means That Eddie Brock Can't Be The MCU's Venom

Venom's entrance into the MCU is complicated by Sony's ongoing universe centered around Spider-Man villains, sometimes dubbed the Venomverse. The 2018 film Venom kickstarted the franchise, leading to several sequels and spinoffs centered around Spider-Man villains and other Marvel characters to whom Sony owns the rights. With Eddie Brock continuing to act as the protagonist of the Venom franchise and outlying cinematic universe, it seems unlikely that Sony would be willing to loan the character out to Marvel Studios in the same way that they did Peter Parker, for fear of diluting the antihero's story arc with two concurrent versions in completely separate universes.

Sony's plans for Venom, specifically the Eddie Brock version of the character, indicate that the MCU will need to take a different approach in its adaptation of the supervillain. Although Sony has indicated that Venom 3 will be Tom Hardy's last solo outing in their cinematic universe, Marvel won't want to wait that long before bringing the symbiote into play in Peter Parker's life. Instead, it would be far simpler for all parties involved for the Marvel Cinematic Universe to skip the Eddie Brock storyline altogether, focusing on a completely different host who may prove to be an even bigger threat to Spider-Man and the entire city of New York.

The MCU Already Has A Perfect Alternate Venom Host

Eddie Brock may not be the Venom to battle Spider-Man in the next installment of his solo franchise, but Spider-Man: Homecoming has already set up his perfect replacement in a long-unfulfilled mid-credits tease, introducing a Venom host who could take Spider-Man down. Mac Gargan, commonly known as the Scorpion, became Venom's host as a part of Norman Osborn's Dark Avengers during the Dark Reign storyline. Gargan's version of Venom didn't possess the same moral compass as Brock's, feeding into the symbiote's baser proclivities and proving to be a true cannibalistic menace that even Norman Osborn had trouble controlling at times. Mac Gargan was a more brutal and dangerous version of the villain.

Making Mac Gargan the new Venom host in the upcoming Spider-Man 4 film would also give the Marvel Cinematic Universe a chance to redeem one of its seemingly pointless post-credit scenes. Despite the nine-year difference between its setting and the timeline of No Way Home, Gargan's tease in Spider-Man: Homecoming's post-credit scene hasn't yielded any new story beats. Even more concerning is the idea that the MCU would waste as compelling a villain as Mac Gargan without having him ever even come face-to-face with Spider-Man. And, with an actor as promising as Michael Mando playing the part, it seems rather short-sighted for Marvel not to follow through on his many possible storylines.

In an era of the MCU when fans must wait extended periods of time to see the many various teases finally come to fruition, the new Spider-Man trilogy needs Venom now more than ever. Thankfully, it isn't too late for Marvel to pay off both its Venom and its Scorpion teases in one fell swoop. Michael Mando's villain, though so far overlooked by the franchise, is the perfect threat to carry the next Spider-Man trilogy on his shoulders. If Gargan's Scorpion personality never makes a live-action appearance, the very least that the franchise could do is make him the new Venom host in Spider-Man 4.

MORE: Venom 3 Is The End… So, What About Secret Wars & Spider-Man Crossovers?