Is Spider-Man in 'Venom'?

Ever since Sony announced a solo Venom movie, every single Marvel fan around only had question on their mind: Will Spider-Man be in the movie? This has been a topic of conversation all throughout production and, now that Venom is finally in theaters, we have a definitive answer.

WARNING: Spoilers ahead for Venom. Continue reading at your own risk...

Of course Spider-Man wasn't in this movie, there shouldn't have been any doubt about that. Sony can't make another Spider-Man outside of Tom Hardy, and Marvel Studios isn't going to throw one of the biggest characters into an off-shoot when no one knows how it will perform.

Kevin Feige and the folks at Marvel are really, really good at their jobs. We all know that by now. They didn't create the world's most popular movie franchise by letting anyone and everyone be connected to what they were doing. There's a process, and Venom was probably never part of it.

When you watch the movie, it's easy to see that the version of the character that Sony created was completely separate from anything related to Spider-Man. There is no giant insignia on his chest, he doesn't have any sort of webbing ability. Instead, the Symbiote can just extend itself into different lengths and directions. It can jump really high, it can climb up walls, and it can withstand all kinds of force. This Venom is just as powerful as the one that was connected to Spider-Man, it's just that this origin story was strictly about space and the Life Foundation, not Peter Parker.

The decision to make Venom a PG-13 movie had many people hoping Spider-Man could then appear in the movie. Sure, the rating helps allow for a potential crossover sometime in the future. A younger-skewing rating also helps movies make A LOT more money, and that's kind of important to a movie studio, so don't think too much into it.

Is there a possibility that Venom could appear on-screen with Tom Holland's Spider-Man at some point in the future? Sure. There's always a chance. But if it ever happens, we'll all be well aware of it before the movie opens.

For now, the two exist in separate universes, and that isn't going to change in the immediate future.

Venom, starring Tom Hardy, is now playing in theaters.