A famous actor is taking on the role of Knull in Venom: The Last Dance. The King in Black and creator of the symbiotes has long been speculated to be in the third Venom movie, and its last trailer all but confirmed Knull’s presence. However, Sony Pictures hasn’t officially announced who is playing Knull, or if that’s even Knull fans saw in the trailer. But with early reviews for Venom: The Last Dance starting to roll in, we now have confirmation that actor and filmmaker Andy Serkis, who directed Venom: Let There Be Carnage, is portraying Knull.
Kelly Marcel replaces Andy Serkis as director of Venom: The Last Dance, but Serkis has found a way to still be involved with the movie as Knull. Marcel was a writer and producer for the first two films in the Sony/Marvel franchise, and will now close out the franchise with its third installment. There was speculation that Knull could possibly be played by Rhys Ifans, who can be seen in the Venom: The Last Dance joining a hitchhiking Eddie Brock (Tom Hardy) in a van filled with hippies. That obviously didn’t turn out to be the case. Ifans is no stranger to taking on comic book roles, having also portrayed Dr. Curt Connors / The Lizard in Sony’s The Amazing Spider-Man.
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Knull is a recent addition to the Venom mythos, but he’s played a big role in the comics and was the center of a crossover event, King in Black. Knull is the creator of the symbiotes and made his comics debut in 2018’s Venom #4. Knull has connections to the very beginnings of the Marvel Universe, and has crossed paths with figures such as the Celestials, Silver Surfer, Ego the Living Planet, and Thor.
Eddie Brock and Venom ultimately defeated Knull in King in Black, with Eddie taking on the King in Black mantle. One of the lead ups to King in Black was Absolute Carnage, which saw Venom team up with the Avengers to battle a much deadlier Carnage.
Venom: The Last Dance is officially rated PG-13, much to the chagrin of the Venom fanbase. There was hope that the last Venom movie (for now) would get an R rating, with star Tom Hardy also in favor of it. Sony Pictures probably weighed the pros and cons of this decision, and ultimately landed on being conservative with Venom: The Last Dance‘s rating.
Venom: The Last Dance arrives in theaters on October 24th. Let us know your thoughts on Andy Serkis playing Knull on social media @ComicBook!