Marvel has already set up how Venom can come back after The Last Dance in Sony's universe. As seen in the final movie of Sony's Venom trilogy, Eddie Brock and his symbiote were separated thanks to a key sacrifice, hoping to ensure that the major cosmic villain Knull the Symbiote God couldn't be released from his prison in space. However, it does seem as though there are a few different ways in which The Lethal Protector could still return in the future.
Custom Image by Kevin Erdmann
In Venom: The Last Dance, it's revealed that Tom Hardy's Eddie Brock and Venom possess a codex, the result of their shared bond and life force created after the symbiote revived Eddie from his lethal wounds at the hands of Riot, as was seen at the end of the first Venom movie. This codex is the key to Knull's release from the symbiote homeworld of Klyntar, explaining why he sends his symbiote-hunting creatures known as xenophages to go after it. While this motivates Venom to sacrifice himself at the end of The Last Dance, there are still a handful of ways in which the titular symbiote can eventually return and bond with Eddie in the future.
There Are Still Pieces Of Venom Left In The Marvel Multiverse
There Are Still Bits of Venom That Survived The Last Dance
Venom: The Last Dance made it clear that the death of either Venom or Eddie would destroy the codex. As such, this is why Venom gives himself up at the end of the movie, not only to save Eddie but to also destroy the key to Knull's freedom. However, both the beginning and the end of Venom: The Last Dance establish ways that Venom is more than likely still alive.
While it was addressed and shown in The Last Dance, the piece of the Venom symbiote that was left in the MCU as seen at the end of Spider-Man: Now Way Home was never collected. As such, it stands to reason that a small piece of Venom still exists on Earth-616 which could eventually make its way back to Eddie in the future (if not Tom Holland's Peter Parker for the MCU Spider-Man's very own Symbiote Saga). Likewise, Venom: The Last Dance's post-credits scene saw the piece of the Venom symbiote that Area 55's Rex Strickland did collect having survived as a cockroach crawls around the rubble of the secret government facility. As such, it's not hard to imagine one or both of these symbiote pieces eventually reconstituting as Eddie's symbiote partner once more.
Venom 3 Heavily Implies Eddie Brock Will Become A Father
"You'd Make A Good Dad"
It's also worth noting that a good amount of time in Venom: The Last Dance is spent teasing a potential future where Eddie Brock becomes a father. Having run into the hippie and alien believer Martin Moon (Rhys Ifans), Venom and Eddie end up hitching a ride with Martin's family who help him get to Las Vegas. To that end, Eddie ends up bonding with Martin's son Leaf more than once.
When Leaf voices his fears of aliens, it's Eddie who provides comfort to the boy and eventually helps him overcome his fears once it's revealed that Eddie is an alien's host. Likewise, the Venom symbiote itself comments in The Last Dance that Eddie would make a good dad. Keeping that in mind, this could very well be a reference to Eddie Brock's status in the original Marvel Comics where he is indeed a father, a reveal that happened just before Knull invaded Earth in 2020's King in Black crossover event. Likewise, Eddie eventually having a son in the Sony universe could have some exciting implications.
Venom Could Return Bonded With Dylan Brock Instead Of Eddie
The Current Venom In Marvel Comics
In the original Marvel Comics, Dylan Brock's mother was Anne Weying, Eddie's former girlfriend. However, both Eddie and Venom are technically Dylan's father, explaining the boy's impressive power and control over symbiotes that emerged during King in Black, making Dylan a key target of Knull himself. In the aftermath of King in Black and Eddie's defeat of the Symbiote God, Eddie becomes the new King in Black while Dylan Brock becomes Venom's new host. As such, this could perhaps be a possible future in Sony's live-action universe as well.
If Dylan were to be introduced in a future Sony project and ends up bonding with one of the pieces of Venom, one could see him becoming a new on-screen Lethal Protector just like he's been on the page since 2021. As such, this would allow Venom: The Last Dance to truly be the end of Eddie and Venom's story as actor Tom Hardy had frequently been saying during interviews and the movie's overall promotional campaign. The symbiotic reins could effectively be handed over to the next generation.
Sony's Marvel Universe Already Set Up Another Venom Replacement
Juno Temple's Agony Is Certainly An Option That Was Set Up
If Sony decides to just let Venom lie in their live-action universe, it's worth noting that they did set up a replacement symbiote hero by the end of Venom: The Last Dance. After all, one of the few survivors during the battle between Area 55's symbiotes and Knull's xenophages was Doctor Teddy Payne (Juno Temple). Having bonded to the purple symbiote that very much looks like Agony from the original comics, it's possible that Agony and Payne could make future appearances in Sony projects, especially when and if Knull ends up breaking free to drown the universe in darkness.
"After all, it would certainly be odd if Venom wasn't involved in a future movie where Knull becomes the main villain and primary threat..."
That said, Venom's ultimate return feels far more probable than not. While it might not include Tom Hardy's Eddie Brock, it's pretty clear that Sony has intentionally set up more than one way for the Lethal Protector to come back after The Last Dance. After all, it would certainly be odd if Venom wasn't involved in a future movie where Knull becomes the main villain and primary threat.
