The rating for Venom: The Last Dance may have fans, as well as star Tom Hardy, disappointed. The third film in Sony Pictures’ Venom franchise is the swan song for Tom Hardy as Eddie Brock / Venom, the character that evolved from one of Spider-Man’s greatest enemies to a full-fledged hero in the Marvel Universe. There was a time when a movie starring Venom would have seemed silly, but Hardy and the team at Sony Pictures have done a commendable job of turning Venom into a property that fans are excited to watch. With Venom: The Last Dance being the end of the road for the Lethal Protector, there was hope that it would move past the PG-13 rating of its predecessors to warrant an R-rating. Unfortunately, that isn’t the case.
Venom: The Last Dance‘s official MPA rating has been revealed, and instead of being rated R, Venom 3 will be rated PG-13 “for intense sequences of violence and action, bloody images, and strong language.” There was a big movement by Venom fandom and Tom Hardy for Venom: The Last Dance to get that R-rating. The advantage of being rated R is that it allows for more violence and bloodshed on film, along with having a more mature tone. Sony Pictures probably weighed the pros and cons of this decision, and ultimately landed on being conservative with Venom: The Last Dance‘s rating.
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It remains to be seen how Venom fans will react to the news. More than likely it won’t matter in the grand scheme of things. Fans who were already going to see Venom: The Last Dance in theaters probably aren’t changing their minds based on a rating, especially if they saw Venom and Venom: Let There Be Carnage, which were also PG-13.
One of the big talking points coming out of the final trailer for Venom: The Last Dance was the appearance of Knull. The villain 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.
While the actor playing Knull hasn’t been confirmed, the cast list for Venom: The Last Dance includes Rhys Ifans, who looks a lot like the Knull we quickly saw in the Venom 3 trailer. 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.