Venom: The Last Dance
Eddie and Venom are on the run from both of their worlds.
Venom: The Last Dance is a 2024 American superhero movie featuring the Marvel Comics character Venom. It follows *Venom* (2018) and *Venom: Let There Be Carnage* (2021), making it the fifth installment in Sony's Spider-Man Universe (SSU). Kelly Marcel wrote and directed the film in her first time as director. Tom Hardy stars as Eddie Brock and the Venom symbiote, with a cast that includes Chiwetel Ejiofor, Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, Stephen Graham, Peggy Lu, and Alanna Ubach. The story centers on Eddie and Venom fleeing from threats in both their home world and Earth.
Tom Hardy confirmed in August 2018 that he was set for a third Venom film. Sony Pictures started development in December 2021 after the second movie came out. By June 2022, Hardy and Marcel were working on the script, and in October that year, Marcel was chosen to make her directorial debut. New actors, like Ejiofor and Temple, joined in mid-2023. Filming began in Spain at the end of June 2023 but stopped the next month due to the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike. Production resumed in November after the strike ended and wrapped up by late February 2024.
The movie premiered at the Regal Times Square theater in New York City on October 21, 2024, and hit U.S. theaters on October 25. Critics gave mixed reviews, though some praised Hardy’s performance. It earned $478.9 million worldwide, making it the lowest-grossing film in the trilogy but still a box-office success.
**Plot** After returning from another universe, Eddie Brock and the Venom symbiote are drunk at a bar in Mexico. Still wanted after their fight with Carnage, Eddie is falsely blamed for the apparent murder of Patrick Mulligan, which becomes international news. Eddie heads to New York City to meet an old contact and clear his name, but accidentally leaves a bit of Venom behind at the bar. Meanwhile, a creature called a Xenophage starts tracking Eddie and Venom.
Soldier Rex Strickland runs Imperium, a government operation at the soon-to-be-closed Area 51 that captures and studies symbiotes that have landed on Earth. Mulligan, who survived his encounter with Carnage, is caught by Strickland. He bonds with one of the contained symbiotes and is questioned by Imperium researchers Dr. Teddy Paine and Sadie "Christmas" to find out why the symbiotes are on Earth.
While hitching a ride on the side of an airplane to New York, Eddie and Venom are attac
- Release date
- October 25, 2024 (United States)
- Director
- Kelly Marcel
- Screenplay by
- Kelly Marcel
- Starring
- Tom Hardy, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Juno Temple, Rhys Ifans, Stephen Graham, Peggy Lu, Alanna Ubach
- Production company
- Sony Pictures
- Box office
- $478.9 million worldwide
- Genre
- Superhero
Lore & Background
After returning from another universe, Eddie Brock and the Venom symbiote are drunk in a bar in Mexico. Still on the run after their recent battle with Carnage, the apparent murder of Patrick Mulligan makes international headlines with Eddie falsely branded a prime suspect. He decides to set out for New York City to meet an old acquaintance in an attempt to clear his name, unwittingly leaving a bit of Venom at the bar. Meanwhile, a creature known as a Xenophage has begun tracking Eddie and Venom. Soldier Rex Strickland oversees Imperium, a government operation at the site of the soon-to-be-decommissioned Area 51 for the capture and study of other symbiotes that have fallen to Earth. Mulligan, revealed to have survived his encounter with Carnage, is captured by Strickland and bonded with a symbiote. Venom explains that Xenophages were sent to Earth by symbiote creator Knull to retrieve a Codex, forged when a symbiote resurrects its host; the Codex will free Knull from the prison the symbiotes trapped him in long ago. Having previously revived Eddie, Venom and Eddie are now carrying a Codex.
Reader's Guide
Venom: The Last Dance serves as the conclusion to the Venom trilogy within Sony's Spider-Man Universe. The film received mixed reviews from critics, with some praising Tom Hardy's performance. Despite being the lowest-grossing film in the trilogy, it was still a box-office success, grossing $478.9 million worldwide. The film introduces Knull, the creator of the symbiotes, played by Andy Serkis, who previously directed Venom: Let There Be Carnage. The mid-credits scene sets up Knull as a future threat, declaring that the universe is no longer safe from him now that Venom has fallen. The post-credits scene hints at the survival of the Venom symbiote, as a black cockroach crawls out next to a broken vial that previously contained a sample of the symbiote. The film marks Kelly Marcel's directorial debut, having previously written the prior Venom films.
Did You Know?
- Tom Hardy revealed in August 2018 that he was signed on to appear in a third Venom film.
- Kelly Marcel made her directorial debut with this film.
- Andy Serkis, who directed Venom: Let There Be Carnage, portrays Knull in this film.
- The film premiered at the Regal Times Square theater in New York City on October 21, 2024.
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