Knull, also known as the King in Black , is the overarching antagonist of the Venom film trilogy in Sony's Spider-Man Universe.
He is a primordial Klyntarian deity and elder god, as well as the creator of the Symbiotes. He has spent most of his life searching for a key that could free him and sends the Xenophages to Earth to retrieve it.
Biography[]
Background[]
Pre-Big Bang[]
Before the universe existed, Knull ruled over a realm of darkness. Then, the universe of light emerged, spreading its brightness through his once-pure black domain. In response, Knull created the Symbiotes to help him destroy all life and light. He conquered many planets until the Symbiotes betrayed him, imprisoning him in a Spire throne within the dark world of Klyntar. Even in his confinement, Knull retained great power, prompting the Symbiotes to flee with the Codex—the only thing that could free him—and to hide it far enough away to keep it from his reach.
21st Century[]
After Eddie briefly died in 2018 during his battle with Riot, Venom revived him, awakening the Codex within Venom. Knull sensed the Codex had returned but didn’t know its exact location. In response, he created a new, less sentient species called Xenophages to serve him. The Codex disappeared again when Doctor Strange accidentally transported Eddie and Venom to the MCU, leaving Knull to wait once more.
Venom: The Last Dance[]
When Eddie and Venom returned to their universe from the MCU, Knull sensed the Codex’s presence again and began creating portals to various habitable worlds, sending his Xenophages to search for it.
The Xenophage sent to Earth could detect Venom when he activated his suit, as the Codex manifested in that form. She would periodically hunt him down but would lose track of him when he retreated into Eddie’s body, which also concealed the Codex. However, when a secret special ops group captured Eddie and Venom, the Xenophage realized that one of the humans had the Codex, prompting her to pursue them to their hidden base beneath Area 51.
The Xenophage tunneled into the facility to capture its prey, Venom, while he was able to convince the government scientists and soldiers to release their previously captured Symbiotes, which each bonded with a new host to fight Knull's monster; most were killed by the creature, as its biomechanical nested mouths functioned as a grinder that would liquefy both Symbiote and host.
On the surface, the Xenophage was able to signal to Knull that she had found the Codex, so he portaled reinforcements of more Xenophages. While powerful experimental weapons and explosive caches were able to incinerate the creatures to the point of nullifying their regeneration powers, three recovered to be as deadly as before.
Venom expanded to cover the three Xenophages, and despite their efforts, he kept them restrained for long enough to allow a highly corrosive acid and explosives to completely obliterate the creatures, although Venom appeared to die as his self-sacrifice was needed to keep the monsters from escaping. Two scientists (one, Dr. Teddy Payne had bonded to the Agony Symbiote), Eddie Brock, and the Moon family with a few surviving military personnel had managed to survive the battle (also surviving was the Mexican bartender taken into custody, who was held underground deep enough to avoid the explosion).
While Venom's death meant the destruction of the Codex, in Klyntar, Knull declared that Earth was now in greater danger due to the loss of its Lethal Protector, as he planned to escape through other means by enacting the King in Black scheme to exterminate all life and become master of the universe of only darkness again.
Personality[]
Knull is a cruel and sadistic being with no redeeming qualities. His only goal is to destroy everything and shroud it in darkness, aspiring to becoming the most powerful being in the universe. He feels no genuine love for his creations, the symbiotes, viewing them only as creatures to do his bidding. When they inevitably betrayed him, he was furious that they managed to overpower him. This anger reflects his arrogance, as he sees himself as a god who deserves absolute loyalty from all living beings, threatening those who defy him with a fate worse than death.
Gallery[]
Trivia[]
- Venom: The Last Dance is where Knull makes his live-action debut, although he loosely inspired the Dark Shadow Lord in Thor: Love and Thunder.
- Interestingly, in Swedish, Knull translates to a vulgar term. It remains to be seen whether his name will be altered in the Swedish dub.
- This marks Andy Serkis' second portrayal of a Marvel character; he previously played Ulysses Klaue in Avengers: Age of Ultron and Black Panther.
- Most fans claim since Knull is still alive, he might become the main antagonist for the fourth upcoming Spiderman sequel, while hoping he has the power to resurrect the original Venom from the Sam Raimi universe.