In theory, Venom was the ideal villain for Sam Raimi's Spider-Man 3, but the symbiote wasn't the right fit for the director. Spider-Man has an immense gallery of iconic villains, and several of them have shone on the big screen in various iterations. Almost all of the live-action interpretations of Spider-Man villains have been portrayed so expertly that it would be difficult to think of a different actor in the role. Unfortunately, Venom's first big-screen appearance wasn't as well-received and bucks this trend, but this was mostly due to the circumstances at the time of Spider-Man 3's release.
Topher Grace's Venom lacked the duality between the man and the monster that Tom Hardy's Venom has been praised for. This Raimi version of Venom also fell short in terms of stature, which, coupled with his limited screentime, caused Venom to be a rather minor threat for Tobey Maguire's Spider-Man. But while Topher Grace remains a controversial choice for the role of Eddie Brock, Venom's infamy is not entirely his fault. In fact, Venom could have been the perfect main villain for Spider-Man 3 had Sam Raimi planned his introduction from the beginning.
Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, and Venom are widely considered Spider-Man's best villains of all time. Willem Dafoe and Alfred Molina have been widely praised for their iconic performances as Green Goblin and Doctor Octopus, respectively, as they embody every aspect of the villains on the big screen. As a result, a trilogy-ender where Spider-Man confronts Green Goblin, Doctor Octopus, and Venom should have been a no-brainer for Sam Raimi in 2007. Not only does Venom round out Spider-Man's greatest trio of villains, but he also embodies everything Spider-Man had learned on his journey as a hero so far across Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2. Green Goblin challenged Peter's values to forge him as a hero before Doc Ock tested his self-confidence once he established Spidey as a beacon of hope. In this way, Spider-Man's greatest battle for the final installment in Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy was to make a stand against his inner demons — a theme Venom could have brought to life better than any other villain.
Yet despite this character progression, Sam Raimi was never truly on board regarding Venom's inclusion in Spider-Man 3. Venom was tacked onto the sequel by request of the studio, and Raimi struggled to balance the villain with the introduction of Sandman (Thomas Haden Church) and Harry Osborn's (James Franco) dark transformation into New Goblin. But even if Sam Raimi had been fond of Venom's role in the threequel, his trilogy never needed a villain like the symbiote. Spider-Man 1 & 2 were all about Peter Parker's relationships with his loved ones, and on a smaller scale, about the dangers of misguided science. A tighter plot would have centered on Sandman's tragic story, and Harry Osborn's falling out with Peter. Both ultimately became villains due to a misunderstanding involving Spider-Man and the death of close relatives (Flint Marko accidentally murdered Ben Parker and Harry Osborn though Spider-Man killed Norman Osborn), and both were able to become threats to Spider-Man due to scientific experiments gone awry.
While Spider-Man 3 is a muddled conclusion to Sam Raimi's trilogy when it comes to its plot, it does retain a charm that ensures it remains popular in contemporary culture despite two different iterations of Spider-Man being released since. Still, Spider-Man and Venom's legendary confrontation has yet to be done justice on the big screen. Considering that the Spider-Man: No Way Home post-credits scene has confirmed that a symbiote has already invaded the MCU, this long-awaited battle appears to now be on the cards sooner rather than later.
