Here's what Knull's role could be in Venom: The Last Dance

Contrary to what everyone expected, Sony decided to go all-in for Venom: The Last Dance and feature the King in Black himself as the main antagonist. While Knull is a relatively new character in comic book pages, he quickly established himself as a force to be reckoned with. In just his second appearance (or third, if you count Thor: God of Thunder #6) he cut the head off of a Celestial. Furthermore, in Guardians of the Galaxy (2020) #8, he's presented as a terrifying being who destroys worlds on an unprecedented scale. He is even compared to Galactus, except Knull actually finds joy in killing all life on a planet.

As a result, the symbiote god is considered an "Avengers-level" threat and someone worthy of having a whole franchise of his own. That's why fans are worried about whether a single movie will be able to do him justice or not. Especially when you take into account the latest news that Venom: The Last Dance has a reserved runtime. With that in mind, we need to ask ourselves: What could Knull's role really be? Can he be presented as a destroyer of worlds in under two hours, or will he have a smaller participation?

While we're weeks away from finding out the answer, we could use this remaining time to speculate. And if we look at the source material, there's a specific arc that Sony could adapt to introduce the terrifying character while also leaving the door open for his return.

Backstory: The King in Black was imprisoned

"Klyntar is word for cage. That is where I am (...) where I have been sleeping for Eons. I am here imprisoned (...) but all is well, child. Your god is awake, and god is coming."

Knull is presented as a primordial being in comic book pages, meaning he existed way before Earth's creation. But even then, it wasn't until thousands of centuries later that Eddie Brock and Earth's Mightiest Heroes learned about his existence. So where was he during all of this time? Why was the King in Black absent during most of Earth's history?

After creating the Necrosword and waging a war on all of the Celestials' creations, Knull proceeded to kill thousands of lives across the universe. Eventually, he met a worthy opponent and their battle left him stranded on an unnamed planet - one where Gorr stole his Necrosword. Devoid of any options, the ruler of the void remained there for more than a century, until eventually discovering that he could "bond" with other creatures.

The King in Black then built an entire army of symbiotes all connected through a hive mind over which he had control. From his throne, he commanded many monsters (including a symbiote Dragon called Grendel) to destroy countless planets. It was a perfect plan until Thor struck Grendel with a bolt of lightning and severed the connection between Knull and the rest of his army. Millions of symbiotes then rose up and trapped the ruler of the void in what comes to be known as the planet Klyntar. He would stay imprisoned there for a very long time until Eddie Brock would eventually reawaken the symbiote dragon, and the King in Black with it.

Everything Knull needed to escape his "cage" was to unite Grendel with its missing pieces (one of which Eddie would eventually possess) in order for the dragon to break him free.

Venom: The Last Dance could be about Knull's escape from Klyntar

It would seem like an impossible task for Venom: The Last Dance to adapt Knull's arrival on Earth in such little time. So instead, the movie could simply restrain to showcase the villain's attempt to escape from Klyntar while also telling his backstory.

In the movie's latest trailer, Eddie's symbiotes mention they have "something" Knull needs, which is exactly what happened in comic book pages when Venom got ahold of one of Grendel's missing parts. Granted, chances are Knull will attempt to find a different means to escape on the big screen other than assembling a giant, ancient dragon. However, the idea could be fundamentally the same.

Venom: The Last Dance could be all about Venom preventing Knull's forces from obtaining something - a key piece that would allow the villain to be free. The movie could end with the King in Black finally on the loose, and the promise of his eventual arrival on Earth. After all, it's been reported that he will be back in other live-action projects, so Sony could attempt to build him up as a character first before we get to see him in action - which could prove to be the right call.

Venom: The Last Dance will release on October 25, 2024.