Tobey Maguire looks set to reprise his earlier iteration of Peter Parker in the MCU's Spider-Man 3 — which could actually fuel the eventual clash between Tom Holland's web-slinger and Tom Hardy's titular antihero from Venom. Following an unprecedented deal between Sony and Marvel Studios, custody of Spider-Man has been shared. Holland debuted within the Marvel Cinematic Universe back in 2016 and has since fought (and battled alongside) such heroes as Iron Man, Captain America, and the Guardians of the Galaxy multiple times. Meanwhile, Sony established its own pocket cinematic universe centered around classic Spider-Man allies and adversaries.

The endeavor was officially kicked off in 2018 with Venom. Despite mixed critical reception, the film was a box office success. As a result, a sequel titled Venom: Let There Be Carnage was rapidly greenlit. Officially dubbed the Sony Pictures Universe of Marvel characters, 2021 was also confirmed to mark the release of Morbius. Starring Jared Leto as the titular living vampire, the first official trailer already featured references to the wall-crawling superhero. It also featured an appearance from Michael Keaton's Adrian Toomes (aka Vulture). As such, emphasized recently by Leto himself, Morbius will be part of an expanding Spider-Man movie universe. Throughout it all, however, fans have wondered how and when Holland's Spider-Man will directly cross paths with the infamous characters.

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Maguire's appearance in Spider-Man 3 could actually help on that front — especially in terms of putting Peter Parker and Eddie Brock on a collision course. The origin story of Venom was greatly altered for the solo film. It eschewed Peter serving as the symbiote's first host and Venom's initially villainous tenure. However, Eddie Brock and Venom ultimately reached an accord to only target bad guys going forward. And with Mysterio outing Spider-Man's identity and framing him for murder at the end of Spider-Man: Far From Home, Peter very much fits that bill. That somewhat reversed dynamic and potentially violent misunderstanding could be further exacerbated by Maguire's presence. After all, his universe has already seen him interact with the man and the alien creature to which he has bonded.

Eddie Brock smiling as Venom in Spider-Man 3

Played by Topher Grace, the villain from the world of Maguire's Spider-Man was a stark contrast to Hardy's iteration of Venom. Though initially pitiful and somewhat sympathetic, he descended into outright gleeful villainy by the threequel's third act. Abducting Mary-Jane, murdering Harry Osborn, and very nearly defeating Peter, Grace's Venom actively thrived on being evil. Unlike Harry and the film's version of Flint Marko (aka Sandman), there was no redemption. And by the time Peter forcefully separated Eddie from the symbiote, the man was too far gone. In the end, this Eddie Brock threw himself into a bomb's blast radius in a desperate effort to once again merge with the creature.

The conclusion fitted with Spider-Man 3's interpretation of Venom. Though clearly conscious, there was no separate and distinct interiority to the alien being. In the eyes of Maguire's Spider-Man, from both personal bonding experience and witnessing it in the hands of Eddie Brock, it was a mind-altering, aggression-fueling entity and nothing more. That may be a far cry from the comics and Hardy's iteration, but it's all Maguire's Peter would know. Therefore, the Venom symbiote and his perceived effects of it could be one of many things that Maguire could warn Holland's Peter Parker about — to both avoid bonding with it and actively bring down anybody that has.

Given all of that, it could put in motion Venom vs. Spider-Man, with both believing that they are the actual hero of the clash. Though the route to get there would've been different, each having that mentality would still serve to bring the characters in line with their comic book counterparts. It would also spark some intense action between the pair — before they inevitably find both common ground and a common enemy to team up against. As such, while Maguire's reprisal in Spider-Man 3 would be exciting in its own right, it equally serving as a stepping stone towards Venom and beyond could be even more so.

More: Spider-Man 3 Should Bring Back Tobey Maguire (But Not As Spider-Man)

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