Venom 2’s blue-eyed character reveal teases Marvel’s toxin for sequel

Poison: Let there be slaughter It may seem like he’s singularly focused on the Venom and Carnage feud from the outside, but take a closer look at the film’s final tease and you’ll find it’s secretly a big screen family affair.

Taking a hint from PoisonCarnage’s reveal in the last act through Woody Harrelson’s version of Cletus Kasady, the sequel sneakily debuts a very special new symbiote before the credits roll.

[Ed. note: This piece contains spoilers for Venom: Let There Be Carnage.]

In his final scene, actor Stephen Graham shows off the bright blue eyes of apparently possessed police officer Pat Mulligan. Mulligan shares his name with the first host of the Toxin symbiote in Marvel’s numerous Venom spin-off comics.

Who is Toxin and what does this have to do with Carnage? Well, as with all the best Venom stories, it’s a comically complicated yet hilarious story about a strange alien pregnancy, jealousy, and a lot of drool.

Image: Peter Milligan, Clayton Crain / Marvel Comics

A four issue miniseries, 2004 Poison vs. Butcher shop Writer Peter Milligan and artist Clayton Crain introduced readers to a “pregnant” Carnage who was preparing to spawn a symbiote child, one of a truly uncontrollable number of different symbiote offshoots born in Marvel comics throughout the years.

In the same way, the Venom symbiote and its host, Eddie Brock, initially spawned Carnage (and the other symbiote characters that inspired the Life Foundation symbiotes in 2019. Poison) Carnage’s pregnancy is part of an asexual process in which a symbiote produces a child in response to panic or threat.

Symbiote children tend to be stronger than their parents, and Kasady and Carnage were outraged at the idea of ​​someone usurping their place. So they set out together to put an end to their goo-kid before he had a chance, followed throughout the series by a more understanding Venom who initially believed that Toxin could be a powerful ally.

Enter Police Officer Pat Mulligan, who, in the series’ first issue, became an unwitting host to Carnage’s son after Father Symbiote made a risky move to plant Toxin, named for Venom, somewhere. out of the way until increasingly ill Cletus recovered. enough to go back and destroy it.

Image: Marvel Comics

Risky indeed, as Toxin became terrifyingly powerful within Mulligan, surpassing Venom and Carnage in both strength and overall stickiness! Toxin had all of his symbiote powers and a host of extras, including fangs, toxic claws, and the ability to amazingly sense his enemies throughout the New York metropolitan area. Brock had to ask Cletus for a temporary truce so they could mutually address the growing threat to their lives.

However, by becoming friends, Toxin gained endorsement from Black Cat and Spider-Man (these things always come back to Peter Parker) in a winning debut against his parents and grandparents. In the series finale, Mulligan and Toxin went on to a life of their own, leaving Mulligan’s wife and newborn son behind to keep them safe.

From there, Mulligan and Toxin would share a multi-story career, including an eponymous solo series that explores Toxin’s rare ally with Spider-Man, his inability to live on his own as Venom and Carnage can, and his molding. since childhood under Mulligan. rules to never commit murder, fire or theft. Eventually, Eddie Brock even became a temporary host to the Toxin Symbiote after Mulligan’s untimely death.

All good fodder for the inevitable Let there be slaughter sequel, but only if director Andy Serkis wants to get really weird with it.