When Will Spider-Man: No Way Home's Biggest Tease Actually Matter?

The Spider-Man: No Way Home post-credits scene teased Venom's introduction into the MCU, but it's not clear when this will actually matter. Tom Hardy plays Eddie Brock, a.k.a. Venom, whose original story takes place in his own universe, but at the end of No Way Home, he's pulled into the MCU as a result of Doctor Strange's first spell. At a bar, Eddie learns about the Avengers and Thanos from the bartender. Although he feels he's been given a lot of information to process in a short time, Eddie thinks that he should visit New York to talk with Peter Parker to learn more. But before he can actually do anything, Strange's second spell is cast, causing all the multiverse characters to be sent back home to their respective universes—including Eddie and Venom—and forcing everyone in the MCU to forget who Peter Parker is.

After vanishing into thin air, Brock does unknowingly leave behind a piece of the Venom symbiote. For now, though, this and Venom's tease seem unimportant to future Marvel installments considering that Eddie Brock and Venom no longer know who Spider-Man is. The symbiote goo starts to crawl, showing that it's very much alive, so there's a chance that it could possibly find its MCU host, whoever that may be. While the symbiote could transfer from body to body to get to New York, it would still take a while for this to happen since Eddie was on a beach in Mexico when he disappeared, should it still be Tom Hardy in the role in the MCU. There are a lot of unknowns right now, so the end credits tease shouldn't actually matter until Spider-Man 4 when more is known.

Why The Venom Tease Might Be Taking So Long

Venom and Spider-Man's rivalry traces all the way back to their comic book origins. Because they share the same universe and are common enemies, it would only make the most sense for Venom's actual MCU appearance to happen alongside Spider-Man. This way, it's reasonable for fans to expect the wait to last until Peter Parker's next major appearance which, at the earliest, means Spider-Man 4. If there happens to be a sequel to Venom: Let There Be Carnage, it's possible that their epic battle could happen even earlier if Tom Holland's Spider-Man is somehow tied into the film. For now, though, Marvel has a lot to set up in MCU Phases 4 and 5, so the proper introduction of Venom can and should wait.

Spider-Man & Venom's Crossover Has To Be Different From Raimi's Movie

spiderman No Way Home Setup Garfields spiderman vs Venom before credits

Director Sam Raimi's adaptation of Venom in Spider-Man 3 was strongly disliked by audiences for many reasons. Comic book readers knew the iconic alien as a brutal, scary, and ruthless foe who desired to kill, but actor Topher Grace's take on him was far from that. Eddie Brock appeared super skinny even as Venom, which didn't make him seem like much of a danger. It further hurt that there wasn't much development for his character, so it made the unconventional casting choice even more egregious and two-dimensional.

The chance for the MCU to fix all of this is there. If Tom Hardy remains to play Venom in Spider-Man 4, there's already enough character development between his two solo movies for him to jump in as a villain for Tom Holland's web-slinger. Visually, Venom appears more muscular and menacing, just like the character shown in the comics. He poses more of a threat this time around and even has that scary feel. Spider-Man: No Way Home teased the MCU introduction of Venom, and when this crossover does happen, it will feel like the satisfying showdown between two iconic characters as it was always meant to be.

Next: Hardy's Venom vs. Spider-Man Future Will Make Or Break Sony's Universe