Knull’s debut inVenom: The Last Dancepresents the opportunity for one of the most wasted weapons in theMCUto seek redemption in the hands of its original creator. Tom Hardy’s third solo movie as Eddie Brock, a.k.a. the host of the alien Symbiote Venom, will pit the unlikely pair against a formidable villain who has never before been seen in live-action. Knull’s appearance inVenom: The Last Dance’smost recent trailerhints at an epic battle in the upcoming movie, but also creates an interesting connection to Marvel Studios' MCU.
Introduced in 2018,Knull, the creator of Marvel’s Symbiotes, is one of Marvel’s newest antagonists, but he has already made himself known as a terrifying threat. It was previously reported thatVenom: The Last Dancewill be the final solo movie focused on Venom in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe, and Knull is a fantastic adversary for the character’s last ride. This is in part due to Knull’s incredible arsenal, which includes a huge number of Symbiotes and a sword that contains an incomprehensible level of power, which has already been seen in the MCU.
Gorr The God Butcher Wielded All-Black The Necrosword In Thor: Love & Thunder
Knull’s most recognizable weapon in Marvel Comics is All-Black the Necrosword, a sword-shaped Symbiote that has enough power to slay even the most powerful gods. This level of power came in handy forGorr the God Butcher’s mission in 2022’sThor: Love and Thunder, ashe acquired the Necrosword during his exchange with Rapu, and used the weapon to wage war on the MCU’s gods, making his way to Eternity. This version of All-Black was previously wielded by the Dark Shadow Lord, though its true origins were never revealed.
Who Owned The Necrosword Before Gorr?
Gorr wasn’t the first person to wield the Necrosword, but who used it before him? Here are the best theories, plus how it could return one day.
Thor: Love and Thunderdisplayed All-Black’s abilitiesseveral times, as it was able to slay many gods, withstand direct hits from Thor’s lightning, and summon shadow monsters that aided in Gorr’s mission. Even so,the weapon received very little development and explanation, and was destroyed by Jane Foster’s Mighty Thor and Mjolnir before it could do any real damage. This was a huge waste of one of Marvel’s most exciting and powerful weapons, butVenom: The Last Dancehas the chance to give All-Black the Necrosword some much-needed redemption.
All-Black Is Knull’s Most Powerful Weapon In Marvel Comics
All-Black’s Origins Were Revealed In Marvel Comics In Venom (Vol. 4) #4 In 2018
Thor: Love and Thunderfailed to explore All-Black the Necrosword’s origin story, most likely due to the rights to this story residing with Sony Pictures, as Knull is a villain connected toVenom and Spider-Manin Marvel Comics.Love and Thunderdid a good job at showing the Necrosword’s strength, but could have taken this further.All-Black was the first Symbiote that Knull ever created, for which he used his own shadow. He created All-Black in the shape of a sword, and promptly used the weapon to decapitate a Celestial, immediately proving its power.
Knull was banished by the Celestials for this action, but took refuge in theCelestial’s severed head - Knowhere- where he forged All-Black into an even more powerful weapon.All-Black was enhanced by Knowhere’s own power, and became metaphysically tied to the Celestial, creating an afterlife where the souls of those slain by All-Black would gather. Knull used All-Black to take on the universe’s gods, earning the sword the title of “Godslayer,” but Knull would later be defeated in battle, causing the Necrosword to leave him and instead bond to Gorr.
All-Black has been wielded by many characters in Marvel Comics, including Knull, Gorr the God Butcher, Thor, Dylan Brock’s Codex and Malekith, and characters from Earth-14412, such as King Thor, Loki, Ego and Galactus.
This is whereThor: Love and Thunderfound All-Black the Necrosword, though it’s unclear whether the MCU’s version of All-Black’s history withKnull is the same as in Marvel Comics. As a Symbiote with extra abilities gained from being forged in the head of a Celestial,All-Black is a remarkably powerful weapon that is also able to corrupt and alter the biology of its wielder, granting them new gifts, too. It would be fantastic to see this dark backstory play out in live-action, andVenom: The Last Dancehas the perfect opportunity to pull this off.
How Venom: The Last Dance Can Bring All-Black The Necrosword
Knull’s Live-Action Debut In Venom: The Last Dance Could Introduce A New Version Of All-Black
Venom: The Last Dance’smost recent trailer confirmed that Knull would make his live-action debut in the upcoming SSU sequel. Even thoughThor: Love and Thunderended with All-Black the Necrosword being destroyed, smashed into pieces by the Mighty Thor and Mjolnir, Knull’s debut in an alternate reality creates the best chance for the weapon to return. The SSU and MCU are in separate universes, which meansVenom: The Last Dance’sKnullcould have his own version of All-Black, perhaps a more comic-accurate iteration of the weapon.
Since Marvel Studios and Sony Pictures have already establishedconnections between the MCU and SSU, it’s possible thatVenom: The Last Dance’sAll-Black could bear striking similarities to that seen inThor: Love and Thunder.Love and Thunderdid a good job of displaying All-Black as a slender and unassuming threat, butKnull’s more primitive version of the weapon inVenom: The Last Dancemay be much more terrifying. It’s possible that Knull may have already lost the weapon, but it would be great to see All-Black revisited in Sony’s Spider-Man Universe.
All-Black In Venom: The Last Dance Can Create More Connections To The MCU
All-Black Gained A Huge Amount Of Power From Knowhere In Marvel Comics
As well as possibly creating a direct connection toThor: Love and Thunderby introducing a new version of All-Black the Necrosword, and possibly even naming its own version of Gorr the God Butcher,Venom: The Last Dancehas the opportunity to form even more bonds to the MCU by debuting Knull and the Necrosword. Most notably, All-Black was forged in Knowhere’s head in Marvel Comics.Knowhere is a significant location in the MCU, the base of operations for the Guardians of the Galaxy, but it could be something much darker in the SSU.
Knowhere was first seen as a mining colony in 2014’sGuardians of the Galaxy, but has since become the base of operations of the Guardians of the Galaxy and the home of a new society.
There is also speculation thatEddie Brock and Venomwon’t be able to take on Knull and All-Black alone, so will journey to Earth-616, the MCU’s primary continuity. This could constitute physical appearances from a number of MCU heroes, though perhaps the most likely option would be Tom Holland’s Spider-Man.Spider-Man and Venom have taken on Knull together on several occasions in Marvel Comics, but haven’t always come out on top, soVenom: The Last Dancecould mark a tragic ending for one of these unlikely heroes.
Venom: The Last Dance
Cast
Venom: The Last Dance is a film directed by an undisclosed director, featuring the character Venom in a thrilling narrative. The movie explores the alien symbiote’s latest challenges and transformations as it navigates through a world full of danger and new adversaries.
