Sony just dropped Knull in the trailer for Venom: The Last Dance, which makes sense—Sony often spoils their movies in their trailers. So, buckle up, folks; this is going to be fun. With the hype around the new Venom 3 trailer, it’s the perfect time to talk about Knull, the symbiote god and creator of the symbiote race. Everything we thought we knew about the Klyntar—the name for the symbiote race—changed in a single 22-page issue: 2018’s Venom #4. And in case it isn’t obvious enough, there are spoilers ahead for that issue, so proceed with caution if that’s a concern for you.
The Origins of Knull
Knull is an incredibly powerful being in Marvel Comics who controls something called the Living Abyss. He existed even before the universe itself, or as he says, “In the beginning, there was nothing,” and that’s where he existed. Knull is also an avatar or facsimile of the cosmic entity Oblivion. Essentially, when everything comes to an end—when the One Above All dies and the universe collapses—Oblivion will be the last entity remaining. In the gap between the end of the sixth universe and the beginning of the seventh, Knull emerged as a being who could control the Living Abyss, and he reveled in this pure darkness.
Knull’s Conflict with the Celestials
But much like walking into a dark, empty house and flicking on a light switch, when the Celestials started creating light and life across the universe, it began to encroach on Knull’s darkness. Knull says the gods, or Celestials, created the universe in what he considered his kingdom, which we would come to call space. According to his story, Knull’s domain was space—pure and utter empty space. He didn’t take kindly to the universe being made in his territory. Knull explains it like this: “My kingdom was not empty. My abyss was not dead, not hollow. The endlessness of my lands was not theirs to raise and reform. Know the void breathes. The abyss has teeth, and shadows only grow in the light.”
All-Black Necrosword: The First Weapon
To fight the Celestials, Knull fashioned himself a powerful sword by creating a living blade from his shadow and decapitating a Celestial by himself. This weapon became the All-Black Necrosword, also known as the God Slayer. Knull used the Celestial’s severed head as a forge to temper his symbiote sword in its cosmic energies. He later recaps that he was unrefined in those early days, and as a result, his creation, the progenitor, was flawed. He says, “To this day, the weaker of my creations carry the scars of their progenitor’s birth inside of them. They still fear the fire of the forge and the discordant and incessant noise of a Celestial hammer beating their will into something wieldy.” This statement is significant because it explains why symbiotes’ weaknesses are sound and fire.
The War Against the Gods
Knull went to war against the Celestials, intent on taking down the divine light that had encroached on his kingdom of darkness. He manifested the first symbiotic suit of armor from the darkness he commanded and embarked on a genocide against the other gods. He was so successful at first that his sword became known by many names: All-Black, the Necrosword, and the God Slayer. Together, he and his living sword slit the throats of creation, literally as he put it. This act set off a conflict with the Celestials, who ultimately banished Knull to the void. But that wasn’t smart because the void is where he thrives, and there his work began. He started creating the very first of the symbiote race, which was a living blade.
Knull’s Downfall and the Birth of Gorr
As Knull was fighting all these gods across the universe, he came across one that actually defeated him. Knull’s body, along with the All-Black Necrosword, fell to the planet of Gorr, who took the sword and then did the exact same thing Knull had been doing. It has been hinted in Marvel Comics that Gorr’s crusade across the universe to kill gods was actually driven by the essence of Knull, pushing him to undertake such an extreme campaign.
Creation of Symbiotes
However, Knull isn’t one to stay down, so what did he do? He searched for a new weapon and discovered that if he bonded his Living Abyss with lesser creatures, he could then manifest and pilot their new forms as vessels. As he put it, “This moment, this primordial instance of symbiosis on this near-barren land, this is where it all truly began.” It was here he created a symbiote horde, and he was at the center of it—the hive mind or the god-host. He controlled them from across galaxies and could see what they saw. Ultimately, though, the symbiotes turned on him, encasing him in a prison they created around him.
The Symbiote Rebellion and Knull’s Imprisonment
For those who saw the trailer and noticed Knull sitting on a throne surrounded by symbiotes, that may or may not be entirely comic-accurate. However, in the comics, he was primarily trapped within a planet that became known as Klyntar. For years, Marvel fans believed Klyntar was the symbiotes’ home planet, but it was actually a prison created to contain Knull. Klyntar is actually their word for “cage,” and countless symbiotes banded together to imprison Knull at the center of this so-called planet. So after all these years, we learned that there was never truly a planet of the symbiotes, but rather a countless number of symbiotes that came together to cage and imprison Knull.
Klyntar: The Symbiote Cage, Not a Home Planet
During his rise to power, right before his defeat, Knull began experimenting with the Living Abyss—living darkness—and seeing what he could do with it. That led to him creating symbiotes. After rebelling against the control of Knull, the symbiotes ventured into the universe. The idea was that they would essentially become what were called Space Knights. They would bond themselves to hosts, and as part of a symbiotic relationship, they would feed off the host’s energies—not enough to kill them, but enough to sustain themselves. They would grant the host powers, and that host would protect the universe in varying ways based on their sense of duty.
Symbiotes’ Evolution
However, when a dragon-like composite symbiote under Knull’s control arrived on Earth and was defeated by Thor, Knull’s connection to the symbiotes was severed. With his connection lost, the symbiotes began to seek new hosts, and these new hosts infected them with light. As a result, the symbiotes started to adopt traits like honor and nobility from benevolent hosts, and this began to permeate the hive. Knull considered this their infection, their poison, their “venom.” Because of this, the symbiotes began to spawn endlessly and revolted against Knull, imprisoning him.
Knull’s Return in King in Black
Knull eventually regained power and took control of the symbiotes once more, gathering them to himself and then fighting and defeating the Celestials, turning them into giant symbiote-encrusted avatars that obeyed his commands. He arrived on Earth, encased it in symbiote goo, trapping everyone inside, which kicked off the King in Black event. Knull’s feats during this event were extraordinary; he even killed the Sentry in a battle so quick it was barely a contest. The Sentry, often viewed as Marvel’s version of Superman, fell swiftly to Knull, showcasing Knull’s immense power.
The Rise of Eddie Brock: The New King in Black
Ultimately, the final confrontation came down to Eddie Brock. As the main host for the Venom symbiote for many years, Eddie Brock’s symbiote had its own awareness and understanding of Knull. There was a constant pull between the symbiote’s desire to be controlled by Knull and its independence. Eddie Brock then attained something called the Enigma Force. For those familiar with the Quantum Realm from Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, the Enigma Force is akin to the power source of the Microverse in Marvel Comics. Marvel calls it the Enigma Force because they never fully explain its origins or how it operates. This force made Eddie Brock the perfect counter to Knull. With this vast power, Eddie Brock was able to destroy Knull and replace him as the new King in Black, leading into the current run of Venom in Marvel Comics.
The Significance of Knull in Venom: The Last Dance
Now you might feel how significant Knull’s appearance in Venom: The Last Dance’s trailer is, but I don’t think Knull will have a major role in this movie. Instead, Knull will most probably be teased for a future storyline where a bigger arc will unfold. But Sony claims this is Venom’s last movie, The Last Dance.
Remember in the first Venom movie, Venom bonds with Eddie’s ex-wife, Anne Weying? Now, Venom separates from Anne, but there is a small detail related to symbiotes: before separating from any being, a symbiote leaves behind a codex in that body. In the comics, when Venom bonded with Anne Weying and then separated, he left his codex inside her, which combined with Anne’s womb, making her pregnant. This led to the birth of the first naturally created symbiote-human hybrid.
This has piqued my curiosity, though these are just theories for now. Still, in the Venom movies, all these pieces seem to be in place. In the trailer, Venom is reminiscing about his and Eddie’s old times. Rhys Ifans’ character is talking about sacrifice. The trailer clearly wants to show that this could be Venom and Eddie’s last ride.